Coca-Cola HBC Northern Ireland (CCHBCNI) was founded as a family business in 1938.
member of the 28 country Coca-Cola Hellenic Group, the business is responsible for the manufacture, distribution, sale and marketing of a wide range or beverages including global brands such as Coca-Cola, Fanta, as well as locally owned brands Deep RiverRock and Fruice.
CCHBCNI says that “giving back” has always been part of the way it does business. It actively invests in community partnerships including the Get Set Programme alongside charity YouthAction.
Gillian Shields, packaging, and sustainability manager at CCHBCNI, said: “We’ve been involved in that programme since 2018 but last year our face-to-face interaction came to a halt so YouthAction developed and moved everything to an online setting to ensure we could still reach youths rather than leave them stranded.
“More than 1400 people used that programme between November and May, which has been huge given the pandemic has impacted young people most when it comes to unemployment. We felt it was critical to continue this support. We are delighted to win this award because when the pandemic hit, everyone paused but YouthAction was quick thinking and together we built a model that worked.”
June Trimble, chief executive of YouthAction added: “The energy we see coming through the programme has been brilliant. We are delighted we were able to continue and our ambition came through.”