Water Conservation with Tech Initiatives on World Water Day 2024
Charoen Pokphand Foods Public Company Limited (CP Foods) is committed to responsible water resource management by incorporating advanced technology throughout its production chain to conserve water sustainably.
The company also shares expertise with local communities and farmers, enabling them to access sufficient quality water during droughts and maintain stable growth.
This initiative aligns with the celebration of World Water Day 2024's theme, "Leveraging Water for Peace."
Kobboon Srichai, Head of Corporate Affairs & Investor Relations at CP Foods, emphasizes that as the integrated agro-industrial and food sectors CP Foods realizes water stewardship is a vital aspect of the company's sustainability commitment to secure quality water sources for the communities.
CP Foods focuses on optimizing water-use efficiency within the organization and reducing the amount of freshwater from external water sources through adopting innovation and technology solutions adhering to the 3Rs Principle (Reducing, Reusing, and Recycling): Reducing water consumption, Reusing water without treatment process, and Recycling treated water. This approach has led to a significant reduction in water withdrawal per production unit by over 50% when compared to 2015 across its operations in eight countries including Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, India, the Philippines and Turkey.
Distinguished innovations and technology related to water stewardship such as Biofloc technology for wastewater treatment within shrimp farms and Ultrafiltration technology have been implemented to enhance water efficiency and minimise freshwater usage.
These technologies have enabled shrimp farms to cut external water withdrawal by up to 75%. Additionally, CP Foods has adopted an air-chilled system in chicken processing plants, reducing water usage by about 15% compared to the water-chilled method.
The company repurposes treated water for non-production-related activities, such as cleaning, irrigation, and road washing. Meanwhile, it utilises advanced reverse osmosis filtration to treat wastewater for use in the cooling down of refrigeration systems and cleaning tools and equipment.
This initiative allowed CP Foods to reuse and recycle 19.5% of its total water withdrawal in 2023, equivalent to 47.3 million litres.
Beyond its internal operations, CP Foods extends its water management insights to farmers and communities through collaboration projects like the fertilizer (recycled) water-sharing program, the groundwater bank initiative, and the 'Rak Lam Nam Mun project. These efforts aim to foster sustainable water resource management and conservation for the benefit of local communities and future generations.
