MUMBAI, India/MARIETTA, Georgia – Carbon black supplier Birla Carbon released its eighth annual sustainability report, titled “Bending Towards Circularity.” The 2020 report focuses on Birla Carbon’s journey in the company’s goal of becoming circular in its business model. The Circulytics tool, used for the report, is developed by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, where circularity is measured on three guiding principles: design out waste and pollution, keeping products and materials in use, and regenerating natural systems.

Dr. Santrupt B. Misra, Chief Executive Officer, Birla Carbon, Director, Chemicals and Director, Group Human Resources, Aditya Birla Group, said, “The year 2020 has been full of unparalleled surprises for the world. The true test of survival has been the ability to respond to ever evolving external dynamics. At Birla Carbon, we believe that ‘Tough times don’t last, smart and tough companies do.’ And this is precisely the spirit that is reflected in our sustainability report.”

He further added, “Eight years ago, we adopted Sustainable Operational Excellence (SOE) as our guiding light for sustainability — a strategy focused on the three pillars of People, Product, and Process, which influences every decision we make. This year, we have taken SOE a step further and introduced circularity as the next organic move. Within this theme lies the essence of our commitment towards modifying an otherwise linear value chain by introducing a more regenerative approach. The 2020 report assesses our sustainability efforts keeping our purpose at its core and tying in our innovation culture to serve our customers and stakeholders better.”

Joe Gaynor, Chief Legal, Sustainability and Risk Officer, Birla Carbon, shared his views on the release of the report, “Birla Carbon has been at the forefront of sustainability in the carbon black industry for almost a decade. SOE has been the central pillar of our sustainability strategy, with particular focus on the environment and the health and safety of our employees, contractors and the communities in which we operate.” He added, “The 2020 report highlights the ways in which we can do our part to encourage a circular economy for the carbon black industry. Through these efforts, we look forward to empowering our customers and suppliers in their sustainability programs through sustainable innovation.”

The 2020 report continues to focus on the KPIs and showcases Birla Carbon’s year-on-year progress against each. While being the global leader in the carbon black industry, Birla Carbon aims to remain the preferred sustainable partner to its customers and stakeholders by imbibing innovation in its day-to-day working.

Birla Carbon listed the key highlighted of the report, which include the following:

• 75% of the company’s plants are net energy positive;
• 100% of Birla Carbon’s sites used recycled process water and/or rainwater in their operations;
• The company has repurposed 60% of its material waste in FY2020;
• The company became the first carbon black multinational to receive IATF certification across all its manufacturing plants;
• Birla Carbon was awarded a Gold rating by EcoVadis for the fourth consecutive year;
• All 9,000+ suppliers are screened using NAVEX Global’s RiskRate^® due diligence system;
• Birla Carbon remained above the chemical industry benchmark for employee engagement; and
• 100% of facilities participated in community engagement.

The online report is available at http://sustainability.birlacarbon.com/.