Dive Brief:
- Anheuser-Busch completed its first zero-emissions beer delivery last week using both hydrogen-electric and electric vehicles in St. Louis, the company announced in a press release.
- The company wants to cut carbon emissions 25% across its "value chain" by 2025 and has already placed an order for 800 hydrogen-electric powered semi-trucks from Nikola. It is also working on a pilot project with BYD to improve the sustainability of its southern California fleet.
- Looking to share best practices on sustainability, Anheuser-Busch hosted more than 100 strategic suppliers and partners last week for the Eclipse Summit to discuss these and other efforts.
Dive Insight:
The delivery had two legs, each using a different vehicle. It started by using a Nikola hydrogen-electric to transport the beer to Lohr Distributors, Anheuser-Busch's wholesale partner. Lohr Distributors then used BYD electric trucks to deliver the beer to the Enterprise Center, a St. Louis hockey arena.
Anheuser-Busch's logistics operation accounts for 9% of its total carbon footprint, the company noted in its most recent sustainability report. It plans to roll out electric trucks throughout its entire long-haul fleet in the U.S. over the next five years.
"This would replace approximately 30% of our total fleet, and nearly 100% of our dedicated Anheuser- Busch fleet," the report reads. Anheuser-Busch has also started partnerships focused on electric vehicles in its European operations.
The electrification and use of lower-emissions vehicles within fleets has been a growing trend in recent years as shippers and carriers seek to lower overall emissions. Both NFI and Penske recently announced plans to use electric eCascadia trucks built by Daimler.
Amazon threw its hat in the ring earlier this year when it announced it had ordered 100,000 electric delivery vans from Rivian. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos acknowledged the company's reliance on fossil fuels when announcing the company's sustainability goals earlier this year. "We have a lot of delivery vans, and they all burn fossil fuels," Bezos said.
Along with Amazon, other large retail shippers including Walmart, Lowe's and Target mention efforts to reduce fuel use in their sustainability reports.
For shippers looking to hire carriers based on sustainability standards, the Environmental Protection Agency's SmartWay program publishes average carrier fleet emissions. Or there is always the Anheuser-Busch approach of building out your own electric fleet.
