Forest City-based outdoor lifestyle manufacturer Winnebago Industries is setting a goal to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by the middle of this century.
CEO Michael Happe says the company is making the pledge through a campaign led by the Science-Based Targets Initiative.
“We recently strengthened our commitment to sustainability by joining the Business Ambition for 1.5 Degree Celsius, a United Nations-backed global coalition of business leaders,” Happe says. “As part of this program, we are committing to help limit the impact of climate change by setting a goal to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. We also announced additional goals on water, waste, and product sustainability.”
Happe says the company’s goals include: zero waste to landfills, with 90% diversion of waste by 2030; net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050; reduce freshwater use by 30% by 2050; have eco-friendly upgrade options on all their new products by 2025; and product life-cycle assessments by 2030.
“We look forward to working with the Science-Based Target Initiative and external validators to develop and enact a plan for achieving this net-zero goal, which represents an important focus of our corporate responsibility strategy,” Happe says.
Winnebago Industries last week reported a record fiscal year with a profit of almost $282 million for the manufacturer of Winnebago, Grand Design, and Newmar recreational vehicles as well as Chris-Craft and Barletta boats.
(By Bob Fisher, KRIB, Mason City)