Westfalia boosts green credentials with Carbon Neutral accreditation

Westfalia Fruit Group has announced that 15 of its businesses achieved the One Carbon World Carbon Neutral International Standard for 2020.

As part of this project, Westfalia calculated its footprint for 2020 with the support of One Carbon World.

The group said Westfalia Fruit in Peru, Westfalia Colombia, Westfalia Fruit Marketing in South Africa and Westfalia Fruit BV in the Netherlands had also achieved carbon neutrality status for their scope 1 & 2 emissions as well as certification under the One Carbon World Carbon Neutral International Standard, a carbon footprint verification organisation and a recognised resource partner in the UN’s Climate Neutral Now initiative.

“As part of our ongoing commitment to the environment we work towards the wellbeing of the planet and are focused on climate change mitigation. We are proud to receive this certification which is a step on the road to our long-term target to be ‘lifetime carbon neutral’ by 2049,” said Johnathan Sutton, group safety and environment executive.

“We are guardians of the environments and communities in which we operate, and our aim is to ensure our environmental commitments become an integral part of our day-to-day activities.

“We seek ways to continually improve our environmental performance and operate in a responsible manner, by focusing on priorities such as reducing waste and making reductions in our carbon emissions.”

Westfalia said it made significant progress towards its sustainability targets last year: reducing its carbon footprint per kilogram of fruit by 5 per cent, waste to landfill by almost 9 per cent, liquid fuel used by 26 per cent and electricity usage by 4 per cent. At the same time, it increased recycled waste by 28 per cent, water use efficiency by 14 per cent and own electricity generation by 50 per cent.

Examples of its sustainability strategy a pioneering low-flow drip irrigation technique that saves a significant volume of the water used to grow the crop, while also increasing the output and economic value of the fruit.

The company estimates that the approach will bring an overall 50 per cent efficiency boost in farms where it is implemented.

For Westfalia Fruit’s GHG emissions that cannot currently be avoided, the company compensated with emissions reductions (carbon credits) certified by VERRA, through afforestation projects in South America that are converting degraded grasslands into forest plantations.

Westfalia Fruit UK also achieved a carbon neutral certification under Carbon Trust, an independent certification body for carbon footprints with an internationally recognised carbon neutral standard.