MUNICH, GERMANY - For the third time in a row, IFCO is awarding its annual Sustainability Certificate in Europe and North America. This sustainablility initiative began in September of 2018, when it was handed to retail customers in Europe and North America. Acknowledging the sustainability efforts not only of retailers, but also of growers, IFCO awards companies of both sectors of our industry.
“The use of RPCs ensures sustainability along the entire supply chain, from the growers to the retailers. By awarding our Sustainability Certificate, we like to recognize the efforts of customers in both industries in reducing their environmental footprint,” remarked Wolfgang Orgeldingr, Chief Executive Officer, IFCO. “The certificate proves that the awarded growers and retailers are taking concrete measures to make supply chains more sustainable and to protect the environment. This commitment is increasingly important to customers as well as to business partners. Therefore, being able to prove this commitment is a decisive factor for business success.”
Each retailer and grower customer receives a certificate highlighting the amount of carbon dioxide, water, energy, solid waste, and food waste avoided by utilizing IFCO RPCs in its supply chain.
As the industry steers toward sustainability initiatives that better the environment, customers are looking for partners that can deliver on sustainable efforts. Taking into account the increased demand for environmentally friendly products and processes helps retailers and growers stand out from the competition, a press release noted. By receiving IFCO’s Sustainability Certificate, the company noted that this is a clear demonstration of environmentally friendly behavior to customers and shareholders alike.
IFCO is constantly monitoring the environmental benefits generated by its logistics concept, the IFCO SmartCycle™, which is based on the principle of "share and reuse." All IFCO RPCs are reused between 30 and 120 times during their lifetime, and at every cycle are put through a rigorous cleaning and inspection process before being delivered for the next cycle. Those RPCs that cannot be repaired are 100 percent recycled and then used for the production of new IFCO RPCs.
As it monitors the environmental benefits through SmartCycle, IFCO reported the following savings:
- 516,168 tons of CO2, equivalent to 280,275 fewer cars on the road in a year
- 9.2 million cubic meters of water, equivalent to over 209 million five-minute showers
- 33,096 terajoules of electricity, enough to power over 17.4 million light bulbs for a year
- 265,873 tons of solid waste, equivalent to the trash produced by 194 million individuals per day
- 47,296 tons of food product waste, equivalent to 78 million average meals in the world.
These benefits carry through to IFCO customers’ supply chains and represent a significant achievement for companies wanting to protect their fresh produce while still being committed to improving their sustainability performance.
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