Energy

Renewable Energy

In addition to reducing our energy consumption, we’re increasingly focused on advancing the development of renewable energy sources. In 2008 we set a goal to purchase renewable energy credits equivalent to 50 percent of the electricity used in our North American company-owned stores by 2010. Last year, we achieved our goal by more than doubling our renewable energy certificate (REC) purchases. This initiative led the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to name us among the top five green power purchasers in the country.

By 2015 we aim to double our renewable energy purchases once again – equivalent to 100 percent of the energy used in our company-owned stores worldwide. We will continue to leverage industry guidance as a member of the World Resource Institute Green Power Market Development Group and the U.S. EPA Green Power Partnership.

Energy Conservation

Energy use accounts for roughly 80 percent of our carbon footprint¹, making it our greatest opportunity for improvement. One of the important ways we’re working to reduce our energy consumption is by replacing incandescent and halogen lighting with more efficient LED lighting. Our LED lights– combined with the energy-efficient compact fluorescent lights already installed in our stores – will have a big impact on our energy use over time. We began exploring LED lighting options in 2008, but at the time found no commercially available product that met our aesthetic and functional requirements.

As a result, we reached out to General Electric to develop an energy-efficient LED bulb that complements our store design and is compatible with existing fixtures.

We launched our LED lighting conversion program in 2009. In 2010 we were able to complete installation in more than 7,000 company-owned stores in the United States, Canada, the UK, China and Singapore. This effort has helped reduce our electricity consumption by 3.3 percent² since 2008. We expect to see a much more significant reduction in 2011 as we measure our first full year of performance since the completion of the retrofit program.

While we fell short of our goal to reduce energy use by 25 percent in company-owned stores in 2010, we spent some critical time evaluating specific areas where we can make improvements. We piloted a new energy management system in 10 stores across the United States, which validated our potential to reduce energy consumption through remote monitoring and control of heating, ventilation and air conditioning equipment. We plan to expand the pilot program in 2011 to validate our findings across a larger portfolio of stores.In the year ahead, energy conservation will continue to be a major focus of our global store development initiatives. We’ll also look at other ways to minimize our energy consumption by replacing existing equipment and appliances with high-efficiency alternatives as they reach the end of their useful life. We’re now aiming to achieve a 25 percent reduction in energy use by 2015.

Water Conservation

Of all the resources on which our business relies, water is certainly one of the most vital. Much of the water in our stores is used to make coffee and tea beverages, and to run equipment such as dishwashers and ice machines. We’re evaluating our needs on an ongoing basis and deploying new conservation methods in order to responsibly manage our water use.

In 2008 we set a goal to reduce water consumption by 25 percent in company-owned stores by 2015. Over the past two years, our water use has decreased by nearly 22 percent³ Average water use per square foot/store/month. as a result of several proactive measures.

One important component of our water conservation strategy has been the elimination of dipper wells. These fixtures used a constant stream of running water to rinse away food residue, keeping utensils clean and preventing bacterial growth. Although dipper wells enabled us to meet or exceed regulatory requirements and internal food safety standards, they caused considerable water waste.

In 2009 we began implementing a new, manually operated hand-meter faucet to replace the dipper wells, reducing our water use while maintaining food safety standards. By the end of 2010, we had installed this mechanism in our company-owned stores in the United States and Canada, allowing us to conserve approximately 100 gallons (378 liters) of water per store per day. Last year we also implemented new water-saving equipment and operational solutions in international markets.

Moving forward, we’ll continue to look for innovative ways to minimize water use in our stores around the world.