The Director of Corporate Communications, Regulatory Affairs and Sustainability at Coca-Cola HBC Bulgaria speaks to ESGnews about the company’s sustainable practices, achievements over the years and ambitions for the future.
In an interview with ESGnews, Jacqueline Tsocheva, Director of Corporate Communications, Regulatory Affairs and Sustainability at Coca-Cola HBC Bulgaria, shares how sustainability is becoming an integral part of business development. On the occasion of the anniversaries of the production centres in Kostinbrod and Bankya, she talks about the modernisation of production, investments in local communities and the goals that outline the company’s development.
Ms Tsocheva, this year Coca-Cola HBC Bulgaria celebrates the 30th and 20th anniversaries of its production centres in Kostinbrod and Bankya. How has the company’s approach to sustainable production transformed over these decades – and which of the journeys makes you most satisfied today?
Thirty years of production in Kostinbrod and twenty years in Bankya are proof of our long-term commitment to Bulgaria. Over these decades, sustainability has gone from being an important priority to an integral part of the way we change and develop.
Today, both plants operate with 100% renewable electricity. That is why the greatest satisfaction for me is that for our team, sustainability is not a promise, but real results. This is what gives us the confidence to continue investing and developing our business with an eye on the coming decades.
Together with Fantastico, you launched the joint initiative “A Drop of Life for the Forest”. Why did you decide to turn the restoration of burned forests into a cause that unites companies, partners and consumers?
Because we believe that there are causes that are much bigger than one company. After the severe fires in recent years, it became clear how difficult and long it is to restore a forest – sometimes it takes between 30 and 50 years. After the Coca-Cola HBC Foundation supported the fight against forest fires in Bulgaria last year with a donation of over 100,000 euros to the National Association of Volunteers in our country, it is now time for the next step.
I sincerely thank our partners from Fantastico, the Southwestern State Enterprise, the National Association of Volunteers and our consumers for continuing to walk this difficult path together. Until October 16, 2026, for every package of Bankya or Rosa water purchased by consumers in Fantastico supermarkets, Coca-Cola HBC Bulgaria and Fantastico will donate 0.10 euros for the planting of nearly 12,000 trees in one of the most severely affected forest areas in our country by the fires. And even more importantly, we have also planned subsequent care for the young saplings.
For me, this initiative also has a personal meaning. The mountain is a place for which I feel great respect and affection. Climbing the peaks of the Bulgarian mountains showed me how fragile nature is and how easily we can lose it. I believe that when businesses, institutions, NGOs and people act together, we can not only contribute to the restoration of affected forest areas, but also build a more responsible attitude towards them.
You can read the full interview with Jacqueline Tsocheva here.