Nestle investing £2.7bn to reach net zero emissions goal by 2050

The firm, which employs 2,570 people at its York and Halifax plants, wants to halve its emissions by 2030 and use 100 per cent renewable electricity at its 800 global sites by 2025.

Nestle’s factory in Halifax is home to Quality Street, the world’s biggest selling chocolate assortment. Its York factory manufactures iconic brands including KitKat, Aero, Yorkie and Polo mints.

The firm, which produced 92 million tonnes of greenhouse gases in 2018, said it would finance these investments mainly through operational and structural efficiencies to keep the initiative earnings neutral.

It will work with farmers and suppliers to promote regenerative agriculture practices, such as restoring soil health, and it expects to source over 14 million tonnes of ingredients from farmers using these techniques by 2030. It will also scale up its reforestation programme, planting 20 million trees a year for the next 10 years,