Success story
The analysis and calculation of greenhouse gas emissions for the entire product range of TOP TEAM Zentraleinkauf GmbH provide exciting insights into emissions and reduction potentials
TOP-TEAM Zentraleinkauf GmbH commissioned us to calculate the product-related greenhouse gas emissions for each individual item in their overall product range, which comprises around 40,000 items. In addition, the information obtained on the product footprints was to be made available to their customers, if requested.
The project to calculate the product carbon footprints (PCFs) began with a joint kick-off meeting in which the system boundaries and life cycle phases were defined. A “cradle-to-gate” approach was chosen, which covers production (including raw materials), packaging, transportation and storage phases.
The calculation of product emissions was based on the Product Life Cycle Accounting and Reporting Standard of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol. Due to TOP-TEAM’s wide range of products, we decided to develop an Excel-based emissions calculator in order to make the internal process as efficient and scalable as possible. The customer provided us with the relevant product data, including item descriptions, gross and net weights and information on suppliers.
TOP-TEAM received product-related carbon footprints for all items in their entire product range – around 40,000 products, including food, beverages and non-food items. Calculations were based on the “cradle-to-gate” approach.
The calculated PCF values can be passed on to customers and interested parties downstream. In addition, an overall emissions balance was drawn up for the balance year 2023 based on individual PCF values and annual sales volumes. This showed that the most emission-intensive life cycle phases on average across all products are production, packaging and transportation.
In future, it will be possible to update the internal emissions calculator annually and feed it with current input data (e.g. article quantities). This will enable a dynamic recalculation in real time in order to identify additional reduction potential. With the measures derived from this, the company can not only reduce its own carbon footprint, but also offer its customers even more environmentally friendly products.
“Reducing our own emissions has long been our focus. Calculating the article footprints was an important step towards transparency and enabled us to get an overall picture. We realized that the majority of our emissions are caused by upstream processes, the manufacture and production of food. Now we need to take next steps together with our suppliers, identify the major levers for reducing CO₂ emissions along the entire supply chain and implement them as quickly as possible in order to make a real difference.”
– Alfred Buchmayr – Head of Sustainability, TOP-TEAM Zentraleinkauf GmbH
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