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Minimize your ingredient emissions through reformulation

Reformulating products with lower-emission ingredients is a powerful way to reduce your carbon footprint without compromising quality. Explore alternative materials or suppliers to cut embodied emissions and align with growing customer demand for sustainable products.

This set of actions forms part of the Food and Beverage Manufacturing action checklist.

Back to “Optimize your logistics” Next: “Engage with your key ingredient suppliers“

Key steps for SMEs to take

1. Assess
Assess the​ carbon footprint of your products to identify emissions hot spots by learning the carbon footprint of top ingredients by spend and volume.​
2. Prioritize
​​Prioritize which ingredients to address based on highest emissions producing categories. ​
3. Reduce emissions
Reduce emissions of key ingredients by procuring lower-emissions versions of those ingredients (e.g., deforestation-free soy, palm, and/or animal products). Including considering sourcing ingredients that have sustainable certifications.
4. Reformulate
Reduce emissions of key categories by considering ways to reformulate toward lower-emissions ingredients.

Examples of SME actions

Measure emissions from the following sources: • Production of ingredients • Emissions embedded in imported ingredients • Emissions from animal feed • Finished goods.
​​​Create a supplier scorecard system to better understand your procurement decisions and alternatives​​.​​
For common ingredients (such as soy or palm oil) procure those which are part of sustainable schemes or have certifications – examples include: • Rainforest alliance • Fairtrade.
Re-design products and develop new lower emissions products by innovating with: • Plant based ingredients • Dairy alternatives • ​​Less carbon intensive ingredients​.

Relevant resources

Tool

The Sustainable Commodities Resource Hub

Source sustainable and legal commodities.

External resource

The Considerate Consumers’ Food Certification Guide

A list of the most popular food certification to help you getting started to opt for sustainable food.

External resource

Food Circle’s Five Certifications for Food Manufacturers

An article providing closer look at five certifications for the food manufacturers.

External resource

Field to Market Fieldprint Platform

For US businesses – an assessment framework that empowers businesses to measure the environmental impacts of commodity crop production and identify opportunities for improvement.

Back to “Optimize your logistics” Next: “Engage with your key ingredient suppliers“
Tool

The Sustainable Commodities Resource Hub

This online platform is a central hub of information, tools and resources to help your business source sustainable and legal commodities – especially those that can be linked to deforestation and conversion of natural habitats, such as palm oil and soya.

This is a high-level resource for SMEs looking to take action on the commodities they buy.

Provided by Efeca

Access Resource
External resource

The Considerate Consumers’ Food Certification Guide

A list of the most popular food certification to help you getting started to opt for sustainable food.

Access Resource
External resource

Food Circle’s Five Certifications for Food Manufacturers

An article providing closer look at five certifications for the food manufacturers.

Access Resource
External resource

Field to Market Fieldprint Platform

For US businesses – an assessment framework that empowers businesses to measure the environmental impacts of commodity crop production and identify opportunities for improvement.

Access Resource

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Es fácil comprometerse. Solo tienes que completar un formulario compartiendo tu intención de reducir tus emisiones.

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Prêt à vous engager pour réduire les émissions ?

S’engager est simple. Il suffit de remplir un formulaire indiquant votre intention de réduire vos émissions.

Vous gagnerez une reconnaissance publique pour avoir fait le premier pas.

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