Supporting Muntons' sustainability journey

• Muntons is a leading producer of malt-based products, with an impressive sustainability track record
• For over 100 years, this family-owned UK business has built a reputation for global excellence, receiving the King’s Award for Enterprise in the sustainable development category in 2024¹
• With the help of HSBC UK’s Sustainability Improvement Loan, linked to their Asset Based Lending facility, Muntons is investing in further developing its sustainability footprint

Muntons is an award-winning supplier of brewing and distilling malts and malted ingredients to the food and drink industry, serving both globally recognised brands and craft brewers. Its malt grain products are used in the global brewing and distilling markets, while its malt ingredients are used within the food, drink, and pharmaceutical manufacturing industries as a natural replacement to additives.

Muntons offers a wide range of clean-label malt products offering ethically sourced, 100% sustainable ingredients, according to the Farming Sustainability Assessment standard developed by the Sustainable Agriculture Initiative Platform (SAI)². This is especially relevant at a time of growing interest in sustainability and high-quality food products.

The Suffolk-based, family-owned manufacturer was founded in 1921 and employs over 330 people globally. It operates plants in Stowmarket, Suffolk and Bridlington, Yorkshire. Muntons holds a EcoVadis Gold Rating, which places it among the top five percent of sustainable companies in the world and is a 2024 recipient of the King’s Award for Enterprise in sustainable development.

In 2015, the company set science-based targets to reduce on-site emissions by 45%, meeting them in 2022 – the first “maltster” (malt producer) to do so³. It aims to reduce emissions from the growing of malted barley by 30 percent by 2025, with targets to reduce landfill waste to zero and reach carbon net zero by 2030. It has also innovated new brewing ingredients such as its Multichoc product, that can reduce the use of cocoa powder in recipes by up to 25%, leading to a 96 percent reduction in the carbon footprint of their cocoa powder.

“Receiving the King’s Award recognises our outstanding efforts in reducing environmental impact through our supply chain,” says Kate Dixon, Head of Sustainability, Innovation and Marketing, Muntons.

Despite its many achievements and awards, the company is not content to rest on its laurels. “Our journey towards sustainability is far from over,” says Dixon. In a bid to further advance its sustainability credentials, Muntons has secured an £83.8 million funding package from HSBC UK, supporting further investment in its sustainability initiatives.

This asset-based lending (ABL) facility began in 2018, with HSBC UK recently extending the facility for an additional year whilst at the same time implementing a Sustainability Improvement Loan – one of the first such ABL solutions of its kind. This is a testament to Munton’s sustainability journey; reducing their environmental impact across the supply chain and in their barley growing sites.

“Muntons plays an important role in producing products that combine natural ingredients with a sustainability mindset,” says Adam Walker, Relationship Director, HSBC UK. “As a global bank with an extensive network, we are well-positioned to support businesses that serve markets around the world. This sustainability-aligned funding solution will help Muntons with its cash flow requirements and support its future sustainability projects.”

Through a mix of capital expenditure and working capital, Muntons will now be able to grow their business both domestically and internationally and they currently have plans to invest in an additional site at Bridlington. In 2022, Muntons also participated in a trial of regenerative agriculture in collaboration with consumer goods company The Suntory Group and supply chain consultancy Future Food Solutions Ltd, in order to explore how barley can be grown in a more sustainable way⁴.

HSBC UK’s Sustainability Improvement Loan⁵ links a company’s cost of capital to its EcoVadis Sustainability Rating and is designed to help businesses transition to a more sustainable economy. “We have already made great progress thanks to the support of HSBC UK,” says Dixon. “This funding reaffirms our commitment to sustainable practices and also provides us with the necessary capital to expand both domestically and internationally,” she adds.

Today we finance a number of industries that significantly contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. We have a strategy to help our customers to reduce their emissions and to reduce our own. Find out more: https://www.hsbc.com/who-we-are/our-climate-strategy