How should drinks brands approach sustainability as a strategic business consideration?

Sustainability is increasingly table-stakes rather than a competitive advantage in the drinks industry. Members report it's now a baseline customer expectation rather than a selling point, and most established brands have made it central to their business strategy.

Key approaches members are taking:

- **Integrate into core strategy** — Make sustainability central to future decision-making and new product development (NPD) from the outset, not as an afterthought. - **Avoid greenwash** — Members emphasize it must be genuinely important (personally and professionally) rather than superficial messaging; authenticity matters. - **Treat as table-stakes** — The consensus is "everyone is doing it these days," meaning sustainability is now an expectation rather than a differentiation tactic.

Caveats: The community discussion suggests this is a live, evolving conversation. Members are actively discussing how to implement sustainability meaningfully rather than how to use it as a marketing angle, indicating the landscape is still maturing.