CLIMATE GOALS IN BKI
BKI sets ambitious climate goal with SBTi: Will reduce CO2 emissions with 42% before 2030
As the first Danish-owned coffee company, BKI foods recieved a validation for its climate goal at the global climate initiative Science Based Targets initiative. It obliges BKI to drastically reduce its CO2 emissions over the next seven years.
BKI foods just sat an ambitious climate goal of lowering the company's total CO2 emissions with 42% before 2030. Dorthe Maagaard, who is Head of Sustainability & Compliance at BKI foods, acknowledges that this is a significant commitment and goal that BKI now has entered into a collaboration with the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
SBTi is a gloabal climate initiative that, upon registration, commits companies world wide to set climate goals in line with the latest research. This means that each individual company must, by 2030, reduce its CO2 emissions to a level where they actively contribute to meeting the goal of the UN Paris Agreement to keep global temperature rise below 1.5° C. For BKI, the validated goal by SBTi has hence been set as a 42% reduction in CO2 emissions.
Planned improvements at BKI foods in 2023
- Installation of solar panels with an expectation to cover approximately 35% of BKI's electricity consumption in Højbjerg, resulting in a reduction of approximately 100 tons of CO2 emissions from electricity usage.
- Ongoing replacement of all company vehicles with electric vehicles by 2025.
- Energy monitoring aimed at energy improvements, including cooling with external air and enhancing heating control in offices.
- Replacement of conventional fixtures with intelligent fixtures.
- Transition from foils for coffee packaging to recyclable foils.
About SBTi
- Science Based Targets initiative is a global climate initiative that commits companies to set ambitious climate goals in line with scientific research.
- The goal is for companies to reduce their CO2 emissions to a level that enables meeting the target of the UN Paris Agreement to keep global temperature rise below 1.5° C.
- In order to contribute to this, BKI foods has established a validated goal by SBTi, requiring a CO2 reduction of 42%.
- BKI foods is the first Danish-owned coffee supplier to be validated by SBTi.
A collective climate fight
Most recently, the Danish retail chain Coop has announced that their largest suppliers must join SBTi by 2025, just like Dansih Salling Group demands that their suppliers develop a plan to comply with the UN Paris Agreement by 2027. Dorthe Maagaard welcomes this announcement as part of a collective climate fight.
– Right now, there are only around 100 Danish companies that have had their goals validated by SBTi, of which we are the only Danish-owned coffee supplier. Several of our customers have already started demanding SBTi membership, so we are naturally pleased to be one of the frontrunners supporting the collective task of protecting the climate and the oppotunities of future generations.
Therefore, we need to off on the right foot, she says, and BKI foods has thus already initiated several initiatives to achieve their goals. Most recently, BKI has invested in the installation of 3.500 square meters of solar panels on their production buildings in Højbjerg, Aarhus.
– Our new solar panel system will produce approximately one-third of all of our electricity in the future, thus saving about 100 tons of CO2 anually. It is a step in the right direction, but to reach our goal, we must become even better at roasting our coffee smartly over the next seven years, and we must seize every opportunity to act more responsibly in our daily lives, Maagard explains.
Coffee in a life cycle perspective
The agreement made with SBTi not only requires companies to look inward but also necessitates examining their products and services from a life cycle perspective, Dorthe Maagaard explains. This means that more than ever before, BKI must look at their coffee from bean to cup.
– For a coffee company like us, it means that we have to set even higher requirements for our suppliers and actively contribute to a more sustainable coffee production. We must be responsible in our choices and consumption of materials, resources, and transportation, and we must help consumers reduce their carbon footprint at home.
When asked if Maagaard is confident in tackling on the task, the answer is a resounding yes. Such a mindset is not new at BKI.
– Since 2011, we have already halved our CO2 emissions once, and we have grown accustomed to thinking in terms of innovation and renewal. For example, we have recently developed Denmark's first coffee bags made of recycleable plastic, and the launch of our new BKI Paraíso Coffee stems from an extensive CSR project where we assist Brazilian coffee farmers in adopting a more responsible coffee production.
In the fact box above, you can see BKI food's planned initiatives for energy and environmental improvements in 2023.
