Heineken's 'Drop the C' Hungarian final

A holistic solution covering the whole production process has won the Hungarian final of the HEINEKEN competition for innovation called ‘Drop the C’ program for renewable energy. With ‘Drop the C’ the company aims to grow its share of renewable thermal energy and electricity in production from the current level of 14% to 70% by 2030.

HEINEKEN Hungária announced the 'Drop the C' program for college and university students in the spring of 2018, looking for innovative ideas for getting closer to its 2020 commitment and being the world's greenest beer producer.

The panel of judges considered as best the presentation of Blanka Szabó of the Corvinus University of Budapest and Dániel Szabó of the Central European University. The pair's 360 °-approach project has reflected complex aspects of beer production ranging from standards to production and shipping. In their convincing lecture, attention was also drawn to the challenges of recycling, as, according to their research, most of the Hungarians occasionally or never collect selective waste. Their solution would not only dramatically reduce the carbon emissions of the company, but would also mean significant cost savings or encourage buyers to recycle as many bottles as possible.