Mondelēz International Launches Green Bond Offering

Mondelēz International, Inc. has announced the pricing of the group’s first green bond.

The green bond issuance by the company’s wholly-owned subsidiary – Mondelez International Holdings Netherlands B.V. – totaled 2.0 billion Euro and consisted of 650 million Euro of 0.250 percent notes due September 2029, 650 million Euro of 0.625 percent notes due September 2032 and 700 million Euro of 1.250 percent notes due September 2041. “The notes are fully guaranteed by Mondelēz International, Inc.,” the American multinational confectionery, food, holding and beverage and snack food company assured.

Mondelēz International intends to allocate the net proceeds from the offering to eligible projects; the project categories were in alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Within these categories, focus areas that are aligned to its priorities include:

• Sourcing Sustainable Ingredients: Mondelēz International is focused on the resilient supply of key raw materials. As one of the world’s largest chocolate manufacturers, the company’s signature sustainable sourcing program, Cocoa Life, invests in innovation, collaboration and on-the-ground support for nearly 200,000 farmers to address the root issues cocoa farming communities face.
• Reducing Waste in Packaging: Mondelēz International aims to find new, smarter plastic packaging solutions that use less virgin material and advance harmonized approaches to recycling systems and infrastructure. Funds will go toward efforts to create a more circular economy where packaging, including flexible film, is reused or recycled.
• Tackling Climate Change: Last year, Mondelēz International joined the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTI) and set the reduction targets for greenhouse gas emissions consistent with helping keep global warming well below 2°C. These goals extend to reducing the environmental impact of growing the commodities essential to the business.

Institutional Shareholder Services ESG (ISS ESG), a leading global provider of environmental, social, and corporate governance research and ratings, has published a Second Party Opinion on Mondelēz International’s green bond framework. It reviewed Mondelēz International’s green bond framework and found that the planned use of proceeds is consistent with the company’s sustainability strategy and material ESG topics. Mondelēz International will publish annual updates on the allocation of the proceeds until the proceeds have been fully allocated to projects meeting the eligibility criteria.

These updates will be reported publicly at www.mondelezinternational.com.

(Published in GLOBAL RECYCLING Magazine 3/2021, Page 4, Photo: Andi Karg)