The Max Hamburger restaurant chain was recently awarded the 2009 Green Awards “Best Green International Campaign” at a ceremony in London on November 18.  The Green Awards recognise the best global examples of companies or organisations communicating sustainability, and Max was honoured their efforts to promote climate smart alternatives to guests directly on the menu boards in their stores. 

For Max, this is just the start of the benefits that they have received from strategically working towards sustainability with The Natural Step.  In the last year, Max has:

• Been featured or mentioned in 131 articles (including one in The New York Times) and TV shows, capturing a public relations value estimated at USD$500,000.
• Been recognised as the greenest fast-food brand in Sweden
• Been recognised by Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt for their award-winning efforts to provide work to disabled people. 
• Created buzz among “sustainability celebrities,” including Sir Paul McCartney, who highlighted Max’s carbon labelling as a positive example during a presentation to the European Parliament on December 3rd, 2009.  >Read more.
• Received a number of awards and prizes, including the "The Green Capitalist of the Year" by the leading Swedish business magazine Veckans Affärer (Business Week).
• Strengthened its brand by a whopping 27 % according to a recent survey and is now Sweden’s 9th strongest brand (all categories).
• Jumped higher than McDonalds in surveys that rate Swedish customers "first choice in fast food".
• Seen a huge jump in the number of Swedes who believe that "Max is very committed about the environment" (5% in 2007 to 15% in 2008).
• Given 90 high-level speeches at food or sustainability conferences and events.

Max is the first restaurant chain in the world to have measured all of the carbon emissions associated with their operations “from the farmers land to the guest’s hand” - a total footprint was estimated to 27,000 tonnes carbon dioxide equivalents per year.   A full 70 % of those emissions emanated from the production of beef.  But since the launch of their Climate on the Menu initiative, Max has observed a 15% increase in sales of “climate smart” alternatives of vegetarian, chicken or fish burgers. 

Additionally, Max purchases wind power for all of their electricity needs and has committed to planning over 90,000 trees each ear in Africa to offset the rest of their carbon footprint.   “As a restaurant, we are part of the problem,” says Richard Bergfors, President of Max Hamburger Chain.  “But we want to be part of finding a solution.  We want to be a role model for our industry.”

This is real change. 

Kaj Török, a Senior Advisor with The Natural Step who has been working with Max for the last three years, notes that all of this attention has created huge advances in Max’s brand value, and therefore, its bottom line.   “Their clear and helpful communication directly to customers and opinion leaders has really helped them make great strides,” he notes.  “We congratulate Max for their wonderful achievements thus far and look forward to supporting their ongoing sustainability efforts as they continue to strengthen their business - one bite at a time.”

For more information, contact:
Pär Larshans, HR and Sustainability Director, Max Hamburger Chain
Kaj Török, Senior Advisor and Sustainability Communications Expert, The Natural Step, Sweden