Abstract
In response to global sustainability demands, this study aims to assess how family-owned food industry enterprises integrate emission reduction mechanisms into their capacity expansion strategies, with the goal of identifying key internal decision-making drivers and evaluating their environmental effectiveness. Family-owned food enterprises were chosen as they dominate the European agro-food sector and, through their long-term orientation and intergenerational responsibility, provide a unique context for aligning growth with sustainability. Energy usage and investment data from five such businesses were analysed over a three-year period. While energy data supported quantitative modelling of emission trends, the investment records—extracted from sustainability reports—were qualitatively assessed and coded according to their alignment with three internal decision-making drivers: socio-emotional wealth, intergenerational cooperation, and heterogeneous governance. Results reveal a consistent trend of investments in energy-efficient technologies, process optimisation, and renewable energy adoption. These efforts led to quantifiable reductions in emission intensity, with CO2 intensity decreasing by 8.8 % and energy use per falling below OECD benchmarks (1.66 MWh/t). In parallel, production capacities increased by approximately 15 %, demonstrating that growth and environmental performance can be aligned. The findings demonstrate that long-term-oriented family firms are aligning growth with sustainability goals. This research contributes to sustainable industrial development literature by evidencing that environmental responsibility and production expansion can be pursued simultaneously.
