Charoen Pokphand Foods Public Company Limited (CPF) is proceeding with the carbon footprint scheme under the corporate goal to reduce Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions throughout the supply chain. Carbon labelling is applied with feedmill processing and products, including chicken, shrimp and shrimp wonton. This emphasizes CPF’s policy on carbon dioxide reduction in its processing lines from upstream through downstream.

Ms. Kularb Kimsri, Vice President, Global Standard System Centre of CPF, said that the Thai conglomerate realizes the value of natural resources and the environment which underpins the agro-industrial business. Under the “Green Business” initiative, the company is the first in Asia to implement the carbon footprint scheme, to measure greenhouse gases emitted during the production and transportation of the products since 2009. This is to ensure sustainable use of natural resources, the underlying model of food for the world, as well as help reduce the global warming which stirs global concerns.

She added that the Thai government has campaigned for green business. The Thailand Greenhouse Gas Management Organization (TGO) has introduced “Carbon Reduction Label” and “Carbon Footprint Label”. As an emitter, CPF joined TGO’s schemes in 2008 and during 2012-2016 has won 148 carbon footprint labels for its products in the chicken, shrimp, pork and feedmill lines. A roadmap is being laid out to obtain the labels for chicken eggs and ready-to-eat food items within 2018.

Ms. Kularb said that chicken is the primary CPF product which has been exported to many countries. The production process has met international standards. CPF recently obtained the carbon reduction label for the supply chain of the chicken business, covering day-old chick, live bird and chicken meat, affirming the company’s ability to reduce greenhouse gases during the production process, upstream to downstream. She attributed the success to continued improvement in production technology: Only quality animal feed is used, day-old chick are of high-quality breeds, and energy use is efficient. This proves that CPF’s chicken products have continually reduced their impacts on the environment. The GHG emission of CPF’s chicken 806,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (based on total sale in 2015) or 50% less than the industry average. The emission is only 2.29 kg of carbon dioxide equivalent per 1 kg of chicken.

CPF’s shrimp wonton, Thailand’s first shrimp product to win the carbon reduction label and was labelled for its carbon footprint in 2012, emits 1.05 kg of carbon dioxide equivalent per 145g bowl. This shows the reduction of carbon by 23% in 2015. The GHG emission of CPF’s shrimp wonton 2,500 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (based on total sale in 2015)

The emission of 1 kg of pork is equal to 4.42 kg of carbon dioxide equivalent, against the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations’ 6.1 kg. This shows the emission of CPF’s pork products is 28% lower than the global average.

In developing products, CPF has taken into account the impacts on the environment, society and stakeholders throughout the supply chain, from animal feed manufacturing, processing and waste management to the disposal of food containers. The eco-efficiency analysis has been applied to reduce the impacts.

“The eco-efficiency analysis shows energy consumption for the production of 1 kg of chicken egg in 2014 reduced by 16% from the 2011 level, emissions (air, water, solid waste) shrank by 22%, toxicity potential declined by 23%, occupational illness and accidents were down by 7%, the use of resources was cut by 28%, and land use was 19% less. The Sustainability performance for chicken product is evaluated using eco-efficiency analysis certified by the US National Sanitation Foundation (NSF), USA.” Kularb said.

CPF is committed to creating environmental-friendly products, to reduce greenhouse gases in the supply chain, through schemes which allow full traceability and demonstrate transparency in resources and energy use. These are to ensure sustainable management of hotspots and greenhouse gas reduction, in line with the government’s campaign. Thailand targets to cut greenhouse gases by 20-25% within 2030, to achieve its “low-carbon society” goal.