PARSIPPANY, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Zoetis Inc. today published its 2023 Sustainability Report “Advancing Sustainability in Animal Health for a Better Future,” to highlight the company’s progress in achieving its Driven to Care long-term sustainability aspirations and provide continued disclosure on environmental, social and governance (ESG) topics. The report shares Zoetis’ actions to meet aspirations across three pillars: Communities, Animals and Planet. Included in the report is the company’s Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) and ESG Index, which provides relevant performance indicators, including those identified by SASB for the healthcare – biotechnology and pharmaceuticals industry. This Index also includes Zoetis’ commitment to disclosing progress aligned with the Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosure (TCFD), plus a link to the 2023 CDP Climate Change Questionnaire.
“Our sustainability aspirations are an extension of our purpose at Zoetis, and we continue to make significant progress by embedding our sustainability strategy across our business as we build a healthier future for our communities, animals and the planet we share,” said Jeannette Ferran Astorga, Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs, Communications and Chief Sustainability Officer at Zoetis and President of the Zoetis Foundation. “Animal health has emerged as a clear climate solution with the Food & Agriculture Organization identifying measures – including genetics, vaccinations and improved access to veterinary care – which can ultimately improve health and productivity of animals and reduce global livestock greenhouse gas emissions.”
Communities – Care and Collaboration
Zoetis invested $7 million in communities through corporate giving initiatives in 2023. These included partnering with Adopt a Pet to improve access to resources for pets, shelters, rescues and veterinary healthcare teams across the United States, an initiative in Indonesia to vaccinate cats and dogs against rabies, and earthquake relief efforts to support rescue and care of horses in Morocco. In total, the company’s community programs reached approximately 202,000 pet owners in need and approximately 91,000 animals impacted by disaster. For its part, the Zoetis Foundation distributed $8.3 million in grants supporting 28 initiatives across 19 countries in 2023, including grants of $3 million to organizations that awarded scholarships to more than 500 veterinary students. This brings the Foundation’s cumulative grant support to $14.9 million of its commitment to $35 million in grants from 2021 until the end of 2025. The funding supports the education, well-being and livelihoods of veterinarians and livestock farmers as well as humanitarian aid and a U.S. matching gifts program.
In recognition of its commitment and actions in 2023 to foster an inclusive culture at its workplaces, Zoetis received eight awards. The report also highlights progress made since 2020 toward the company’s diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) aspirations for 2025. In addition, colleagues at Zoetis have the opportunity for continued growth and development through annual talent reviews, development and leadership training, and mentorship and coaching. In 2023, the Leading@Zoetis program was expanded and delivered both virtually and in-person, reaching over 2,000 leaders in eight languages around the world with tools to effectively assess, coach and lead their teams. The program also offers supplemental well-being and mentoring learnings for leaders.
Animals - Innovation in Animal Health
Because healthy animals are more productive with reduced mortality rates, improving the health of livestock can contribute to the economic well-being of farmers and communities, support global food security, and play a role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions per unit of food produced from livestock systems. In 2023, Zoetis launched new diagnostic, vaccine and parasiticide solutions for livestock producers to support their health and productivity goals. These products included:
- Vetscan Mastigram+™ to enable timely detection of infection and appropriate use of antimicrobials to treat mastitis in dairy cattle across international markets,
- Valcor™ in the United States (branded as Dectomax V® in Australia and New Zealand) to help veterinarians and producers protect cattle against resistant gastrointestinal parasites,
- Fostera® Gold PCV MH vaccine to protect pigs from respiratory disease in additional global markets, and
- ALPHA JECT® Moritella vaccine to protect against winter ulcers in Atlantic salmon in Norway.
Collaborations across the value chain continue to be instrumental, and in 2023, Zoetis initiated a project with Dairy Management Incorporated (DMI) and the Ruminant Farm Systems (RuFaS) modeling team to augment the development and testing of the RuFaS on-farm emissions model. Zoetis contributes animal health and genetics data for the project, as well as supportive research expertise to enable comprehensive modeling of dairy farm carbon footprints. The work continues into 2024 and represents an opportunity to understand levers that can improve the efficiency and environmental impact of milk production.
Continuing to build on five years of its African Livestock Productivity and Health Advancement (A.L.P.H.A.) initiative, in 2023 with continued support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), Zoetis launched a new five-year initiative. A.L.P.H.A. Plus expands the initial program’s reach to seven additional African countries with focus on cattle and aquaculture in addition to poultry. The new initiative aims to increase access to an expanded portfolio of veterinary products and services, including diagnostics, and improve the scale of delivery networks for livestock farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa. Through the end of 2023, Zoetis has trained over 35,000 farmers, veterinary professionals, distributors and lab personnel, and treated 12.7 million cows and 260 million chickens in the region - exceeding goals by 27% and 30% respectively.
Planet – the Drive to Protect our Planet
Focused on Scope 1 and 2 emissions from its manufacturing, distribution and research and development (R&D) operations, office locations and fleet vehicles, Zoetis continues to progress toward carbon neutrality in its own operations by 2030 by:
- Expanding its renewable energy portfolio which includes multiple utility programs, seven photovoltaic solar arrays installed at key manufacturing and R&D sites, and now two virtual power purchase agreements (VPPAs) due to come online within the next 2 years,
- Reporting 32.6% renewable electricity sourced by the end of 2023, aligned with its RE100 commitment. More than one-third of the company’s manufacturing sites operate with 100% renewable electricity,
- Completing 38 energy efficiency and other carbon reduction projects at key sites in 2023, and
- Increasing hybrid and electric vehicles to represent 12.1% and 3.1%, respectively, of its total vehicle fleet.
Collectively these investments, combined with operational changes made since 2021, have reduced the company’s Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 18.9%.
Finally, as part of its packaging strategy, Zoetis continued to take substantive steps to improve its products’ environmental impact in ways most important to customers and the company’s footprint. At one of its key manufacturing sites, in Lincoln, Nebraska, plastic clamshells were replaced with paperboard boxes for rabies vaccine packages distributed in the U.S. market, cutting PVC plastic use by an estimated 8.0 metric tons and overall packaging by an estimated 2.5 metric tons annually.
For more detailed disclosure on the company’s sustainability programs, practices and policies, please see zoetis.com/sustainability or download Zoetis’ 2023 Sustainability Report. Zoetis will continue to share updates on its sustainability activities, including progress against its Driven to Care goals, and report annually.
About Zoetis
As the world’s leading animal health company, Zoetis is driven by a singular purpose: to nurture our world and humankind by advancing care for animals. After innovating ways to predict, prevent, detect, and treat animal illness for more than 70 years, Zoetis continues to stand by those raising and caring for animals worldwide – from veterinarians and pet owners to livestock farmers and ranchers. The company’s leading portfolio and pipeline of medicines, vaccines, diagnostics and technologies make a difference in over 100 countries. A Fortune 500 company, Zoetis generated revenue of $8.5 billion in 2023 with approximately 14,100 employees. For more information, visit www.zoetis.com.
DISCLOSURE NOTICES
Forward-Looking Statements: This press release and the 2023 Sustainability Report (including the 2023 SASB and ESG Index) contain forward-looking statements which reflect the current views of Zoetis with respect to: our progress toward our Driven to Care aspirations; our business plans or prospects; expectations regarding future operating or financial performance; the plans and future work of the Zoetis Foundation, and other future events. These statements are not guarantees of future performance or actions. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties. If one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or if management's underlying assumptions prove to be incorrect, actual results may differ materially from those contemplated by a forward-looking statement. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made. Zoetis expressly disclaims any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. A further list and description of risks, uncertainties and other matters can be found in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, including in the sections thereof captioned “Forward-Looking Statements and Factors That May Affect Future Results” and “Item 1A. Risk Factors,” in our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and in our Current Reports on Form 8-K. These filings and subsequent filings are available online at www.sec.gov, www.zoetis.com, or on request from Zoetis.
All trademarks are the property of Zoetis Services LLC or a related company or a licensor unless otherwise noted.
See the footnotes within our 2023 Sustainability Report for more details regarding all calculations.
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