In every community where we operate, we aim to be a good neighbor, contributing to the quality of life. We bring economic benefits through our core business activities while also investing directly in community programs.

We are deeply rooted in the communities where we operate. We believe that our company’s success should stimulate their development and we put important effort into achieving this goal. Through our business, we create economic value for the communities. We make responsible business decisions and we use resources with respect to the local community.

We work closely with government parties, NGOs and other partners, to address the most important issues of the community and we invest annually, at a System level, between EUR 700,000 and 1,000,000 in dedicated programs and initiatives. We rely greatly on the contribution of our team, who get involved in our projects as volunteers and even suggest new project ideas (like the ecotourism rehabilitation of Bigar waterfall implemented in 2016). In 2015, around 700 employees volunteered in planting trees, cleaning rivers, running marathons, supporting causes, donating Christmas gifts to underprivileged children.

Tax revenues to government are another important contribution to the economy.

Sourcing locally as much as possible (over 90% of our suppliers are local) is one of the ways we contribute to the growth of the local economy and at the same time, a means to protect the environment by reducing transportation impact.

As a major investor in Romania, we can help to introduce new knowledge and technology, and attract other potential investors.

Find out more about how we create economic value for communities. 

Community investment

Each year we contribute to our local communities through community investment projects. We focus our efforts in support of local communities on 3 key-areas:

• Water and environmental protection
• Active and healthy lifestyle
• Youth development

In addition to our strategic focus areas, we also respond to specific needs and concerns. For example, we have built or renovated schools in Suceava county.

We work with community leaders, government and non-government organizations (NGOs) to develop long-term partnerships and programs that bring real benefit.

After Us

In 2016, we debuted our sustainability platform, After Us, with a project connected to an area of great importance to our activity – the Land of Dornas. It is the place of origin of the water we use for our Dorna, Dorna Izvorul Alb and Poiana Negri products. This is one of the few places in the country where the natural environment has remained untouched and the people are still authentic, as well as their traditions.

We wanted to give back to this community, by working to preserve its authenticity, protect its resources and by inspiring others to contribute. To promote the treasures of this area, we engaged journalists, influencers and photographers who helped tell the stories of the Land of Dornas. We created a great amount of online content and a spectacular book dedicated to the area.

Bigar waterfall eco-touristic rehabilitation

One of our projects under the After Us platform is the eco-touristic rehabilitation of the Bigar waterfall in the Caras-Severin County - nominated in 2013 as the world’s most beautiful unique waterfall in the world, by online publication World Geography. The project was implemented with the support of the ViitorPlus Association, the CON-A company, the Bozovici City Hall and the Cheile Nerei-Beusnita National Park Administration, while the idea of the project belongs to the Coca‑Cola HBC employees from the Timisoara plant, whonoticed the area’s potential and wished for an easier and safe access to the bottom of the waterfall. The total amount of the funds granted for the project is approximately EUR 140,000.

Care for Children

With our Care for Children project, developed in partnership with Save the Children NGO, our System initiated a fight for the lives of premature babies. In Romania, 1 in 10 children is born prematurely. Without proper equipment in local hospitals, 10 babies out of 1,000 born die before 1 year of age and the main reason is preterm birth.

Water and environment protection

In addition to reducing the water we use in our bottling plants, we help protect local watersheds. Working together with government bodies, NGOs and others, we support conservation activities and raise public awareness.

"Green Danube" is our flagship program and one of our longstanding partnerships. Together with the International Commission for Danube River protection, we conduct conservation and raising-awareness activities in Romania and in nine other countries lying in the river basin. These activities include annual Danube Day celebrations to which of thousands of people participate aiming to raise awareness about the economic, historic and environmental value of the Danube River. We also carried a campaign to discourage poaching and inform people on the importance of protecting the Danube’s fauna.

"Adopt a river from its spring to its mouth" integrated program was implemented in the north part of the country in partnership with Tasuleasa Social and Viitor Plus NGOs. The program resulted in:

As part of the Adopt a river from its spring to its mouth initiative, we set up a Water Educational Center at one of our former Plants in Dorna Candrenilor. There, local teenagers had the opportunity to receive education on biodiversity, pollution and ways to address it, responsible tourism and best practices in volunteering. The project was carried out in partnership with the Romanian Ministry of Environment and Forests, Calimani National Park and Tasuleasa Social organization. We constantly look for the best initiatives that can be developed and implemented in Dorna Candrenilor so that we contribute on the long-term protection and conservation of the natural resources in the area where our water sources spring.

In Romania, illegal tree cutting has been officially declared vulnerability in national security. We work to reduce the problem of deforestation and to educate the public on this critical issue.

Over 8,500 volunteers participated in the programs we developed in partnership with Tasuleasa Social and Viitor Plus NGOs and with the support of 115 colleagues.

• During the implementation of Tree Day, 115 employee volunteers and hundreds of participants from the local communities planted trees in 50 localities from Dorna – Poiana Negrii area.
• At the 4th edition of the Pedagogical Forest, 600 participants attended the workshops and trainings held right in the forest, which helped educate young people on the importance of clean water in the environment, the relationship between water, forest and local communities and also the way in which these three elements coexist.
• We supported The Responsible Mountain Hiking School educational sessions, held by Tasuleasa Social NGO and organized in 38 cities.

At an international level, Coca‑Cola HBC is a founding signatory of the CEO Water Mandate of UN Global Compact. For the better understanding of water use in the supply chain, Coca‑Cola HBC is also working with the Water Footprint Network.

An active and healthy lifestyle

Encouraging people of all ages to exercise more is a major focus of our community initiatives.

In 2015, we moved 50,566 people through our projects, most of which were jointly organized with The Coca- Cola Company: Happy Moves, Urbathlon, SETS Epode, SGIM Epode. Over half of these people were moved within Happy Moves project (29,801), which was our main community program in 2015. Through this program, we reinvented the favorite sports of Romanians and added an extra dose of fun. Climb to Smile, Human Foosball, Kung FuN, Jump & Stick, Water Bubble Fun and tandem racing, in oversized T-shirts, were the reinterpreted sports which convinced Romanians that moving is a lot of fun.

Youth development

We are an active supporter of youth development, through our programs which aim at helping young people develop self-esteem and leadership skills.

In 2017, we partnered with Social Incubator NGO to implement our newest youth development program, Youth Empowered aimed at supporting young people develop the skills they need in order to maximize their changes of joining the active force work and also at enabling them to make good decisions for their future.

Open happiness workshop was our initiative which began in 2013, when we started to promote healthy lifestyle among students. International trainers delivered hundreds of hours of workshops. Participants were then invited to visit our Plants in Ploiesti and in Timisoara. The Plant Tours program emerged as a response to the needs of the Romanian education system to reconnect the high-schools with the field of practice but also as part of our employer strategy to invest in young people with technological profile.

In 2015, a total of 1,946 students and 67 teachers participated in the "Visit to the Happiness Factory" Plant Tours we organized.

Our Youth Development projects were implemented with Students Associations and our key NGO partner, Scoala de Valori.

Junior Talent and IQADS Kadett are other examples of previous projects that ran on campuses in partnership with student NGOs.

Disaster relief and recovery

Safe, clean drinking water is one of the most urgent needs in the wake of floods, droughts or other disasters. As a beverage manufacturer, we make it our duty to provide immediate assistance. Working together with relief agencies, we quickly mobilize our people and our facilities to swiftly deliver safe drinking water to those most in need. We also respond to request for sponsorships, charitable and in-kind donations connected to our priority areas and ensure the presence of volunteers where needed.

We provided 100,000 liters of drinking water following the floods and draughts during 2007 - 2010.

We support affected communities for the long term where needed, helping them recover and rebuild in the aftermath.