On January 20, Swiss time, the World Economic Forum (WEF) 2025 Annual Meeting kicked off in Davos, Switzerland. The conference brings together nearly 3,000 leaders from all walks of life from more than 130 countries around the world to focus on the theme of “Collaboration for Intelligent Age.” Key discussions revolved around five core themes: “Reimagining Growth,” “Industries in the Intelligent Age,” “Investing in People,” “Safeguarding the Planet,” and “Rebuilding Trust.”
Invited to the World Economic Forum 2025, Wang Li, General Manager of Moutai Group, represented the company on the global stage. She shared Moutai’s initiatives and achievements in ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) practices during several events on January 21, Swiss time. Wang highlighted the significant contributions and notable successes of Chinese enterprises in ESG, emphasizing Moutai’s commitment to responsibility and its forward-thinking vision as the “World’s No. 1 Distilled Spirits Brand.”
In this era of rapid change, enterprises face unprecedented challenges and opportunities. During the event, Wang Li gave Moutai an answer to the question of how to stand out in the fierce market competition, achieve sustained and steady development, and embrace the new cycle with long-term and high-quality development.
According to Wang Li, “long-termism” is the cornerstone of the organization in the past, the core of the present, and the inevitable guide for future development. Internally, the organization should have strong supply chain resilience, strong ability to cope with future challenges, and accumulate momentum and advantages for future development; externally, the organization should integrate with nature and society to create a good external environment conducive to the survival and prosperous development of the enterprise. “High-quality development” is to deal with the relationship between quality and efficiency, quality and development speed, and long-term and short-term. The “new cycle” is new in the situation is more complex, manifested in the macro-economic transformation of old and new momentum, while the reduction of consumption scenarios, weak consumer demand has also brought about the adjustment of the industry cycle.
Wang Li said, to recognize the new cycle, embrace the new cycle in order to cross the new cycle. How to cross, is to adhere to long-termism and high-quality development, the core is to always adhere to sustainable development, and ESG concepts in the whole process of production and operation, to build up the momentum and advantages of future development.
Wang Li explained the concept of ESG with Moutai's practice. Combined with the ESG concept, “E” is to live in harmony with nature, “S” is to share value with the society, and “G” is to combine advanced management concepts with craftsmanship to form a modern corporate governance system. Modern.
-- Harmony with Nature. Wang Li said that Moutai attaches great importance to ecological protection. Take water as an example, Moutai brewing water from the Chishui River, brewing after the discharge of tail water, in addition to physical, chemical and other water quality factors in line with the standard, Moutai also pays close attention to biological and other water ecological factors, all-round protection of the ecology of the Chishui River. At the same time, Moutai insists on the green development of the industry, including the synergy of energy saving, carbon reduction, emission reduction and efficiency enhancement of the industrial chain itself and the resourceful, green and high-end utilization of the industrial chain's by-products.
- Sharing Value with Society. Wang Li said that for customers, Moutai adheres to a consumer-centered approach, providing customers with functional, experiential and emotional values, and advocating a new concept of self-pleasing and altruistic consumption. For employees, Moutai actively introduces advanced technology, improves labor efficiency, and does a good job of labor protection, so that employees have a sense of gain, happiness, and value. For shareholders, Moutai insists on long-term dividend distribution, increases buyback efforts, and closely communicates with investors, so that shareholders can grow and develop together with the enterprise. For partners, Moutai has built a community of interest, a community of emotion and a community of destiny, forming a business ecology of shared interests, shared feelings and shared values. For the society, the Guizhou Moutai Public Welfare Foundation was set up to formulate public welfare planning for heaven and earth and humanities, and to practice the social responsibility of a large enterprise in all aspects using ecological compensation, industrial drive, livelihood education, and cultural protection and inheritance.
- Modern Governance. Wang Li emphasized Moutai’s pursuit of excellence in corporate governance by blending traditional craftsmanship with modern management tools such as the EFQM model. These efforts have earned Moutai prestigious accolades, including the National Quality Award and the European Quality Award 7 Diamonds and an Outstanding Achievement for an Inspiring Culture. These recognitions underline Moutai’s leadership in sustainable practices and innovation.
Wang Li pointed out that Moutai has already traversed several cycles in its history; this round of the cycle is both a challenge and an opportunity. The key is to maintain a long-term strategic determination and an unwavering pursuit of high-quality development to navigate this cycle. Moutai believes that "the small boat has passed through all the mountains."
During a luncheon-themed “Technology Without Boundaries: Shaping the Future Together,” Wang Li also met with 35 global opinion leaders, to discuss a series of forward-looking global issues from the dimensions of the leap in artificial intelligence, the rise of innovative technology enterprises, and the realization of sustainable development through green technology innovation. During the event, Wang Li shared Moutai's approach and experience in green tech innovation.
“Wine, like music and art, is one of the languages that can realize borderless communication between people.” During the sharing, Wang Li said that winemaking is one of the earliest technologies for humans to utilize microorganisms in nature to make gourmet food, and is known as the first generation of biotechnology. Chinese liquor, including Moutai, is different from other spirits in the world in that it mainly uses natural mixed-bacteria inoculation and open solid-state fermentation, with rich microbial diversity at its core, and pays special attention to conforming to the time of the day and the time of the year, adapting to the conditions of the place, and following the law, as well as pursuing a balance of natural, micro-ecological and humanistic ecology. It can be said that the essence behind this bottle of Moutai is to adhere to the harmonious coexistence of man and nature, and adhere to the innovative power of green technology to support the green development of enterprises. Moutai's green science and technology innovation, including “the main value chain of the green level of enhancement” and “wine industry by-products of the use of” two aspects.
The wine industry is the core value chain of Moutai. According to Wang Li, the company's greening efforts within its primary value chain focus on "energy saving, carbon reduction, emission reduction, and efficiency enhancement."
"Energy saving" emphasizes robust energy management. Over its 70-year history, Moutai has undergone multiple adjustments to its energy structure, transitioning from timber and coal to natural gas a decade ago. More recently, the company has progressively increased the use of green energy, with each energy restructuring opening up new development opportunities.
"Carbon reduction" accompanies the energy restructuring process. Moutai is actively exploring advanced technologies such as carbon dioxide heat pumps, waste heat recovery, and carbon capture to address the challenge of reducing carbon emissions.
"Emission reduction" became particularly significant for Moutai last year when the company scientifically measured the "carbon footprint," "water footprint," and "material footprint" of a single bottle of Moutai wine. This analysis enabled the identification of key areas to focus on, resulting in targeted efforts to reduce both carbon and water usage.
To achieve greater efficiency, Moutai has applied innovative technologies aimed at improving project quality and performance. By integrating top-level design and promoting these efforts efficiently, Moutai has steadily enhanced the greening of its core value chain in the wine industry.
Wang Li said that the utilization of wine industry by-products should be resourceful, green and high-end. Ten years ago, Moutai actively explore the value of by-product recycling path transformation, and now has completed the industrialization development, to achieve the wine lees, straw and other brewing by-products 100% resource utilization. Currently, Moutai is also committed to a series of technological research and development to address the greening and high-end of by-products. Taking cellar water as an example, Moutai is exploring three paths to turn waste into treasure: one is to turn it into a carbon source and apply it to sewage treatment; the other is to turn it into PHA and make it into biodegradable packaging materials; and the third is to raise microalgae to produce functional proteins. Moutai will vigorously promote the research and development of the utilization of by-products, and on the basis of the industrial cycle, continuously improve the level of greening and high-end to increase the added value of the industry.
As Wang Li concluded, "Moutai’s legacy is built on harmony with nature and a commitment to innovation. Looking ahead, we remain dedicated to promoting sustainable development while preserving the cultural essence of our craft."
Today, high-emission industrial sectors and agri-food systems account for nearly 60% of global emissions. Achieving a carbon-neutral value chain in these sectors requires a combination of corporate ambition, government support, financial investment, and disruptive business models. Among these, green procurement plays a pivotal role in facilitating the transition, establishing market conditions, and decarbonizing high-emission industries. However, its potential remains largely untapped, which is why the First Movers Coalition (FMC) was formed. The Coalition is a joint initiative by the World Economic Forum and the U.S. government aimed at promoting the adoption of breakthrough low-carbon technologies by high-emitting industries to achieve the global goal of net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
At the Forerunner Alliance Leadership Meeting, the Forerunners outlined a pathway for leveraging green procurement to unlock the full potential of the innovative clean solutions market. As a special guest at the meeting, Wang Li shared Moutai’s specific practices and innovations in reducing carbon emissions and promoting sustainable development within the food industry.
Wang Li stated that in 2024, Moutai conducted a preliminary assessment of the full life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions of a bottle of Moutai wine, dividing its carbon footprint into five stages: raw material acquisition, brewing and production, product transportation, product sales, and packaging recycling and utilization. Based on the carbon footprint analysis, the first, second, and fifth stages were identified as critical points for emission reduction, and Moutai developed targeted strategies across the supply chain to address these challenges.
- Energy Structure Transformation. The first initiative involves transitioning to 100% green power for electricity. This is complemented by exploring advanced technologies to replace natural gas boilers used for energy in the distillation process. Currently, small-scale experiments have validated the feasibility of these methods in terms of functionality and principles. The next step is resolving equipment integration issues, which will allow the replacement of natural gas energy with green energy. For scenarios where natural gas remains unavoidable, Moutai is exploring advanced technologies to capture carbon dioxide emissions from boilers and convert them into reusable carbon sources.
- Reduction and Greening of Packaging Materials.Efforts are underway to reduce and optimize packaging materials. This includes scientifically minimizing the variety of materials used and reducing the weight of individual packaging units—for example, developing lighter wine bottles. Additionally, Moutai is working to decrease the use of paper products and is exploring the application of bio-based biodegradable materials, such as PLA and PHA, in its packaging.
Wang Li said that the industry is still lacking in the recycling of post-drinking packaging, which also brings about a certain amount of carbon emissions. 2025, Moutai will fully launch the recycling of post-drinking packaging in China's provincial capital cities. By 2025, Moutai will launch the recycling of all post-drinking packaging in China's provincial capitals, with a view to reducing carbon emissions from the whole industrial chain by 20% by 2030.
The World Economic Forum (WEF) is a non-governmental international organization dedicated to examining global economic challenges and fostering international economic cooperation and exchange. Originally established as the European Management Forum (EMF) by Klaus Schwab in 1971, it was renamed the World Economic Forum in 1987. This year marks its 55th annual meeting, which will run until January 24.
During the Winter Davos Forum, Wang Li will also participate in the “China Night” dialogues, engaging with both Chinese and international experts. The discussions will focus on how Chinese enterprises are navigating the era of intelligence and shaping their international image.