Why CO2 compensation is important
"Since 2021 we compensate CO2 emissions."
The global community has agreed that global warming must be limited to below 2 degrees Celsius - or better yet, 1.5 degrees - to prevent catastrophic consequences. But current pledges by individual countries are only sufficient to limit warming to a maximum of 4 degrees. Closing this ambition gap will require an additional and substantial commitment from companies, as well as citizens.
As a manufacturing company in particular, we assume responsibility for ourselves, the environment and future generations, both regionally and globally. We have recognized that voluntary emission reductions and the offsetting of unavoidable emissions are essential to effectively counteract climate change. Therefore, we have decided to neutralize our CO2 emissions and thus want to contribute to a future worth living. Because we do not only want to analyze the problems, but also tackle and solve them.
The climate impact of our company has been determined for us by Fokus Zukunft GmbH & Co. KG: Our carbon footprint is approximately 471 tons of CO2 equivalent pollutants per year (2021). To put this into perspective: On average, a person in Germany causes about 11.6 tons of CO2 per year through their lifestyle.
We commissioned the external sustainability consultancy Fokus Zukunft to calculate our company's footprint. The emissions footprint was calculated using the officialGreenhouse Gas Protocol Standard: Scope1, Scope 2 as well as upstream Scope 3 emissions, excluding raw material purchasing. Read more
We keep our carbon footprint as small as possible from the very beginning
We already do:
- Use of high-quality natural ingredients, no synthetic fragrances and preservatives from petrochemicals
- Our products are concentrates: smaller packaging, no unnecessary fillers, less material consumption, less storage space, less transport volume, less trucks on the roads, less waste generated.
- Product packaging made of recycled and recyclable materials: bottles made of 100% recycled plastic, cartons made of FSC-certified, recycled paper, recycling of transport cartons, material reduction through refill bags/ecopacks, labels and bottle caps made of recycled plastic (currently being converted)
- Highly efficient production processes, low scrap, low material waste.
- Our buildings and production are powered by 100% green electricity. The in-house combined heat and power unit provides heat and additional electricity.
- All lighting has been changed to energy-saving LED lamps
- the new building is heated with a heat pump and has a green roof for insulation.
- Surrounding fallow land is laid out as flowering meadows for insects, as a source of food and winter quarters, to support biodiversity.
Source: Fokus Zukunft
Why do we compensate with climate protection certificates in other countries?
Greenhouse gases are distributed evenly throughout the atmosphere. It therefore makes sense to avoid emissions where the costs are lowest. In addition, projects in emerging and developing countries help to improve the economic, social and ecological situation and support the realization of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals. For emerging and developing countries, emissions trading is a key driver for the transfer of clean technologies and sustainable economic development.
We support projects through offsetting in Uganda, Tanzania, Uruguay, Peru, India
More about the projects:
source: United Nations
The certificates we purchase support climate protection projects in accordance with internationally assured standards
With the 2030 Agenda adopted in 2015, the global community under the umbrella of the United Nations committed to 17 global goals for a better future. The guiding principle of the 2030 Agenda is to enable people around the world to live in dignity and at the same time to preserve the natural foundations of life in the long term. This includes economic, ecological and social aspects. In this context, the 2030 Agenda emphasizes the shared responsibility of all players: politics, business, science, civil society - and every individual.
The climate protection projects we purchase are each accredited, approved and monitored according to one of the three internationally recognized certification standards - VCS (Verified Carbon Standard), UN CER (Certified Emission Reduction of the United Nations) or the Gold Standard developed by WWF. The validation of the project results, in terms of CO2 savings achieved, is certified by independent testing bodies, such as TÜV (technical inspection agency).
Protection from misuse
The purchased climate protection certificates are decommissioned after expiration. This means that the funds from the offset really only support the project. A certificate that has been decommissioned cannot be resold. This is an important step. This makes them unusable for abusive certificate trading, the proceeds of which would no longer benefit the project.
Frequently asked questions
The carbon footprint is the measure of the amount of greenhouse gases (measured in CO₂ equivalents) produced directly and indirectly, by an activity of an individual, a company, an organization or a product. It includes the resulting emissions from raw materials, production, transport, trade, use, recycling and disposal. The basic idea of the CO2 footprint or carbon footprint is therefore to create a basis on which influences on the climate can be measured, evaluated and compared. In this way, necessary reduction potentials can be identified, measures can be developed and their effectiveness can be evaluated.
The corporate carbon footprint is the CO2 footprint of a company and the product carbon footprint is the CO2 footprint of a product.
According to the principle of the "Clean Development Mechanism" described in the Kyoto Protocol, greenhouse gases that are produced in one place on earth and cannot be avoided are to be saved by climate protection projects in another place. To finance these, companies buy certificates of corresponding climate protection projects from the six available project sectors (biomass, cooking stoves, solar energy, forest protection, hydropower and wind energy). Each certificate represents 1 ton of CO2 saved by the respective project. There are numerous climate protection projects worldwide, most of which support renewable energy projects. The initiators of these projects receive emission credits for their commitment, which can be traded in the form of climate protection certificates. The amount is measured, for example, by comparison with the emissions that would have resulted from the construction of a coal-fired power plant.
The calculation of greenhouse gas emissions includes the seven main greenhouse gases defined by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the Kyoto Protocol: carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), nitrogen trifluoride (NF3) and sulfur hexafluoride (SF6).
What are CO2 equivalents?
Not each of the seven major greenhouse gases is equally effective. For example, methane is 21 times more damaging to the climate than CO2, nitrous oxide 310 times, and sulfur hexafluoride as much as 14,000 times. To compare emissions, all greenhouse gases are therefore converted to CO2. This is then referred to as CO2 equivalents.
The conversion of the collected consumption data (such as electricity consumption or fuel consumption) is done using emission factors, which indicate the emissions per unit (e.g. per kilowatt hour of electricity or liter of gasoline). The emission factors come mainly from DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs), but also from the GEMIS database (Global Emissions Model of Integrated Systems, IINAS) and the Ecoinvent database, and are updated regularly.
How are emission certificates generated?
The initiators of the climate protection projects - mainly renewable energy projects - receive emission credits for their commitment, which can be traded in the form of climate protection certificates. The amount of the emissions offset is measured, for example, by comparing it with the emissions that would have resulted from building a coal-fired power plant instead of generating renewable electricity.
The climate protection projects we purchase are each accredited, approved and controlled according to one of the three internationally recognized certification standards - VCS (Verified Carbon Standard), UN CER (Certified Emission Reduction of the United Nations) or the Gold Standard developed by WWF. The validation of the project results, in terms of the CO2 savings achieved, is certified by independent testing bodies, such as TÜV (the German technical inspection agency).
The acquired number of CO2 certificates were decommissioned. This is significant in that this decommissioning is a prerequisite for the design and marketing of CO2-neutral companies and/or products. Without decommissioning, a CO2 certificate could continue to be traded in the voluntary market, which would not achieve any additional emissions reduction.