carbon emissions in the food and beverage sector: a climate

A CLIMATE SMART INDUSTRY BRIEFTM

CARBON EMISSIONS IN THE FOOD AND BEVERAGE SECTOR

SECTOR SPONSORS ADDITIONAL SUPPORT

SPONSORS

Climate Smar t Businesses Inc. is a social enterprise that provides a training and cer tification program for businesses to measure their carbon emissions, identify oppor tunities for cost, energy, and carbon savings, and communicate their effor ts internally and externally.

We work not as consultants, but as teachers, using a capacity-building curriculum, top-rated software tool, and one-on-one client suppor t. Businesses and organizations renew their Climate Smar t cer tification by measuring their carbon emissions annually to track progress toward reducing emissions and add to their reduction plans. Individuals coming through our training learn to measure, analyze and reduce their company’s impact: key skills in the emerging green economy.

Climate Smar t also works with local governments, utilities, industr y associations and other corporate par tners to engage their business communities. We catalyze innovation, which strengthens businesses in the face of risks from volatile energy and fuel prices, the rising cost of waste disposal, and an increase in climate change impacts.

Climate Smar t businesses cut unnecessar y consumption of energy, fuel, and materials, as well as waste generation, tying climate action to smar t business practice. Since 2008, we have helped more than 770 businesses and organizations of all sizes and sectors prepare for the future.

Using our growing set of data, Climate Smar t develops repor ts, case studies and analysis for community emission modeling, utilized by both local governments and businesses to benchmark their progress against emission and cost-saving goals and amongst their peers.

Learn more about how Climate Smar t can help your organization’s move to a new, prosperous normal.

Go to www.climatesmartbusiness.com or call 1-888-688-6283.

Empowering businesses to reduce carbon emissions and cut costs

ABOUT CLIMATE SMART

Climate Smart business training session (photo credit: Climate Smart)

www.climatesmartbusiness.com

1 Introduction

4 Food Processing and Distribution

15 Case Study: Left Coast Naturals

17 Case Study: Van Houtte Coffee Services

19 Food Retail

27 Food Services

34 Case Study: Recycling Alternative and Tacofino

36 Invitation to Businesses

37 Sponsors

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to Climate Smart’s third Industry Brief in a series showcasing data and trends in climate change action among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). These organizations are making smart decisions to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, while improving their top and bottom lines at the same time.

The series came about as a way of responding to our clients’ curiosity about their performance compared to their peers and competitors. In each Brief we address sectors with similar operation types, highlighting what we have learned about the sector’s emission sources and opportunities for reductions. It’s also a forum to share the wealth we have gathered: ideas generated and tested by Climate Smart businesses aiming to improve the way business is done.

Learn more about how Climate Smart can help your organization transition to the new low-carbon economy.

www.climatesmartbusiness.com1-888-688-6283

There are 2,989 billion tonnes of CO2e in Earth’s atmosphere. 689 billion tonnes, or 22% of

this amount, has been added by human activity.

VISUALIZING A TONNE OF CARBON

In carbon accounting the unit of measure is tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e). This represents the amount of seven different greenhouse gases (GHGs) released into the atmosphere. Each of these gases has a different global warming potential (capacity to heat the atmosphere), so they are conver ted into equivalent tonnes of CO2: the most impor tant greenhouse gas and the one that represents the vast majority of the world’s GHG emissions.

1 tonne of CO2e at ground-level pressure and temperature

would �ll a sphere10.9 m in diameter

CO2

This Brief focuses on the food and beverage sector, comprising food and beverage processors and distributors, retail stores, and food service businesses. The business data provided in this Brief comes from the Climate Smart data pool of greenhouse gas emission inventories and reduction strategies for 770+ businesses, many of which have measured their emissions with Climate Smart for a number of years. 77 food sector businesses have completed their Climate Smart certification to date, forming the basis for this study.

1CARBON EMISSIONS IN THE FOOD AND BEVERAGE SECTOR

http://www.climatesmartbusiness.com

BC’s food sector includes producers, processors, and distributors of food as well as food services and food retail sectors. There are over 30,000 food sector businesses in BC employing just over 300,000 people and contributing over 10.1 billion dollars to the province’s GDP*. As our food travels down the supply chain from growers to processors to grocery stores and restaurants and, ultimately, to our plates, energy, fuel, and other resources are used at every step along the way to grow, transpor t, prepare, package, cook, and serve the food we eat. This energy and fuel use produces carbon emissions and contributes to climate change, the environmental challenge United Nations Secretar y General Ban Ki-moon calls “the defining issue of our time”.

In this brief, we focus on the three sub-sectors of food processing and distribution, food retail, and food services and profile forward-thinking and innovative businesses that are taking action to reduce their carbon footprint while strengthening their business and protecting themselves from rising fuel and energy costs. These businesses are using GHG emissions as a lens to look at their business and identify and improve upon the areas of inefficiency, while strengthening their top and bottom lines at the same time. From small coffee shops to food distributors employing hundreds of people, from corner stores to supermarket chains, these businesses are taking the lead in improving the way food business is done. We hope that their journeys and achievements will inspire more businesses to star t measuring and managing their emissions. We encourage industr y associations to use this repor t to help focus their effor ts to suppor t emission reduction initiatives within their sectors.

* Source: Fast Stats 2012: Agriculture, Seafood and Agrifood, September 2013, BC Ministr y of Agriculture, and Statistics Canada Cansim Table 379-0030

Farming and Fishing

Food Processing and

Distribution

Food Retailers Food Services

Employment (total employees)

29,800 49,325 75,081 153,073

Establishments (number of businesses)

9,887 3,443 4,441 12,562

GDP Contribution (million $):

1,314 3,843 2,988 3,334

Projected Emissions (tonnes CO2e)

-- 320,000 180,000 450,000

Direct Supply

Direct Supply

FoodProcessing

andDistribution

FoodRetail

Food Services

CustomersFarmingand

Fishing

Traditional Supply Chain

Export

Import

THE FOOD AND BEVERAGE SECTOR


There is much to be learned from the greenhouse gas management journeys of food-related businesses and organizations. Some of the points Climate Smar t discovered are:

• Refrigerantemissionsvar ygreatlyandcanaccount for up to 90% of emissions for some businesses. This is often an area where businesses can make a real difference and reap some substantial power bill savings by retrofitting their aging refrigeration equipment.

• Wasteisalargeemissionsourceforfoodbusinesses. Often the majority of the waste is organic, and businesses achieve significant reductions by simply diver ting their organics from the landfill through composting.

• Electricity,whilebeingarelativelysmallemission source for these businesses due to the low emission intensity of BC’s power grid, often corresponds to one of the highest operating costs, and offers low-hanging fruit oppor tunities for cost savings.

Did you know?

BC’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Targets Act sets aggressive legislated targets for reducing the province’s greenhouse gas emissions. BC’s emissions are to be reduced by at least 33% below 2007 levels by

2020. A further emission reduction target of 80% below 2007 levels is required by 2050.

To date, Climate Smar t cer tified businesses in the food and beverage sector have reduced 1,366 tonnes CO2e and achieved annual cost savings of $430,000 from transpor t, electricity, waste disposal, and heating. This represents a 7% annual reduction – higher than the average 5% achieved to date by Climate Smar t businesses.

Emissions from food distribution, processing, retail, and food services sectors combined are projected at nearly a million tonnes of CO2e. This includes just four key sources: electricity, natural gas, waste, and fleets. If these businesses reduced their emissions from these four sources by just 5% (an average reduction achieved by Climate Smar t cer tified companies), it would translate into a reduction of near ly 50,000 tonnes of carbon and $20M saved in operating costs. By 2020, this annual 5% reduction would add up to over 250,000 tonnes reduced and $100M saved in operating costs – a significant step towards helping BC meet its greenhouse gas reduction targets.

AN INTERNATIONAL STANDARD FOR CARBON EMISSIONS MEASUREMENT

GHG inventories compiled through the Climate Smar t program follow the GHG Protocol, an internationally recognized standard developed by the World Resources Institute and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. According to this protocol, an organization’s emissions are divided into three categories, or scopes:

Scope 1 comprises all direct sources of emissions (i.e ., sources owned or controlled by the repor ting business): fuel combustion from heating, fleet vehicles, and equipment owned or leased by the repor ting company, as well as refrigerant leakage from company-owned machinery. Repor ting of Scope 1 emissions is mandatory under the protocol.

Scope 2 includes purchased electricity, heat, and steam. Repor ting of Scope 2 emissions is mandatory under the protocol.

Scope 3 comprises all other indirect emissions: materials use, waste disposal to landfill, transpor t of people and goods with vehicles not owned or controlled by the repor ting company (business travel, third-par ty shipping), paper use, staff commuting, and others. Repor ting of Scope 3 emissions is currently optional under the protocol; however, 96% of Climate Smar t businesses choose to measure at least a por tion of their Scope 3 emissions.

KEY FINDINGS AND COST SAVINGS


FOOD PROCESSING AND DISTRIBUTION


Food processing and distribution in BC encompasses over 3,400 organizations and employs near ly 50,000 people, contributing 3.8 billion dollars to the province’s GDP. The projected emissions for this sector are 320,000 tonnes of CO2e – this includes emissions associated with electricity and natural gas use, as well as fuel used by vehicle fleets and emissions from waste sent to landfill. If these businesses collectively reduced their emissions from just these four sources by 5% (the average annual reduction recorded by Climate Smar t cer tified businesses), it would result in a reduction of 16,000 tonnes of CO2e, and approximately $7M saved in operating costs. Over six years, by 2020, this would amount to a reduction of 26%, or over 85,000 tonnes of CO2e, and $36M in operating costs for these businesses – a significant step towards helping BC meet provincial GHG reduction targets*.

* Emissions are estimated using emission intensities derived from the Climate Smart data set. Cost savings are calculated assuming a 5% reduction across all emission sources and current energy and fuel prices.

BY THE NUMBERS

In this section, we look at what motivates businesses in food processing and distribution to manage their carbon emissions, the sector’s key emission sources, and reduction strategies that Climate Smar t businesses in this sector implement to cut their emissions and operating costs. The data for this section is derived from the Climate Smar t data set that includes over 40 food processing and distribution businesses that have become Climate Smar t cer tified since 2008. We hope that showcasing the leadership of these forward-thinking businesses will help create momentum and inspire other companies to take action on climate change while strengthening their business and preparing for the clean economy of the future at the same time.

MET Fine Printers craves to serve BC’s Incredible Foodie Community with the finest Innovative Communication Experiences. We literally love to play with food in MET’s 12 year strong Canstruction Vancouver event that has raised over 1.3 million Cans of food for the GVFB. This event is one facet of our Triple Bottom Line business model. Creating an environment of innovation, community and service that makes it tough to resist par tnering with us.

MET is one of Nor th America’s sought-after custom printers and recognized not only for innovative craftsmanship and environmental leadership, but also for its commitment to doing the right thing within the community. The finest print quality resides in the same space as the finest environmental and social attributes: r ight here at MET.

MET provides incredible power to the food and beverage community with our MET Resource Web to Print por tals, putting all of the power MET’s print communication tools at your finger tips.

Find out how MET can power your Marketing.

Visit www.METprinters.com or call 1-866-254-4201 for more of our stor y.

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SPONSOR


http://www.METprinters.com

personal interest and education

marketing and brand lift

building on green practices

top three cited reasons for carbon management

MOTIVATIONS FOR MANAGING CARBON

Climate Smar t surveys businesses upon registering for our training and cer tification program to understand the motivations driving action on carbon emissions management. The survey results for food processors and distributors are shown in the char t.

Education is the most oft-cited driver for businesses (near ly 60% of par ticipants mention it). The practice of carbon management is still new to many businesses and educating themselves on this new business practive is an impor tant driver.

Marketing and brand image make up another strong factor as businesses observe the market demand shift towards more environmentally responsible products and services. Many companies seeking to become Climate Smar t cer tified already have a number of sustainability initiatives in place and are looking to solidify their commitment and quantify the benefit of their effor ts as well as prioritize next actions.

58%

52%

44%

29%

50%

24%

15%

Employee retention

9%

14%

Cost-cutting / efficiency

CSR mandate

Building on existing green initiatives

Marketing / reputation / brand image

Education

Customer / investor / partner demand

8%

Networking / B2B opportunities

Anticipating future requirements

Industry / community engagement

“Why are you choosing to manage carbon?”Survey of food processing and distribution businesses on entering Climate Smart program

10%Supply chain / other requirements


Finding cost saving oppor tunities is cited as a driver by over 40% of the businesses as they see energy, waste and fuel prices rise and want to protect their business from the impact of increasing production costs.

Industr y and community engagement is a factor cited by near ly a third of businesses: companies look to network and learn best practices from their peers as well as take a leadership role within their sector.

A corporate social responsibility mandate, and supply chain/customer/par tner requirements are also star ting to appear as drivers for businesses in this sector to star t managing carbon.

Salt Spring Coffee has been an environmental leader since our inception in 1996. We reduce our GHG emissions by optimizing green bean shipping, using fuel-efficient vehicles, and working towards zero waste. We continue to forge our own path by initiating climate projects that impact our communities. In coffee regions we are developing projects to create clean energy, and in Vancouver we are suppor ting food service companies to reduce their waste as leading sponsor for LOCO BC’s Zero Hero program.”

Climate Smar t’s enthusiasm for teaching made it really enjoyable to learn how to calculate greenhouse gas emissions, which was a process that had always seemed intimidating and cumbersome. Since we star ted working with the organization in 2011, we have published information about our footprint in our annual sustainability repor t and gotten great feedback from our customers, consumers and others in the coffee industr y. I can’t recommend Climate Smar t highly enough!”

Mickey McLeodCo-founder, President and CEOSalt Spring Coffee, BC

Kim Elena IonescuCoffee Buyer and Sustainability Manager, Counter Culture Coffee, Durham, NC, USA

“

“


CARBON EMISSIONS IN FOOD PROCESSING AND DISTRIBUTION

One of the first steps businesses take in Climate Smar t’s training and cer tification program is to map their emission sources and determine which to include when quantifying their carbon footprints. In accordance with the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol (the internationally recognized standard used by Climate Smar t), all businesses measure “direct” emissions such as natural gas used for heating and processing, fuel used in vehicle fleets, and refrigerant leakage, and “indirect” emissions associated with consumed electricity. The vast majority of Climate Smar t businesses include other indirect emission sources, such as landfilled waste, business travel, staff commuting, and third par ty shipping. While inclusion of these indirect emissions is not mandatory under the GHG Protocol, these activities often offer many oppor tunities for improved efficiency, emission reductions, and cost savings. Once a business has gathered the necessar y data and entered it into Climate Smar t’s online GHG management tool, it is reviewed by Climate Smar t’s team of advisors for any errors and for compliance with the GHG Protocol. Below are two representative emission profiles of businesses that have measured their emissions with Climate Smar t, and the stories of what they learned from the process.

In this section, we present profiles of a food processing company and a food distribution company in BC. The profiles are meant to illustrate the process of quantifying emissions and to show what a company may discover about its emissions. Along with the emissions profile , we present the cost corresponding to each measured activity. This highlights not only carbon reduction, but also cost savings oppor tunities that lie in optimizing these aspects of the company’s operations.

Did you know?

A release of just one kg of R-22 – a commonly used

refrigerant in the food sector – is equivalent to a release of 1,770 kg of carbon dioxide.

This is equivalent to the emissions generated from burning four barrels of oil.

In addition to its high global warming potential, R-22 is an ozone-depleting refrigerant,

and, as such, it is scheduled to be phased out of production

by 2020 according to the Montreal Protocol – an

international environmental agreement signed in 1987.

If you have a system that uses R-22, talk to your refrigeration contractor about replacement

options.


This food processor measured its natural gas and electricity usage as well as refrigerant leaks as their Scope 1 and 2 emission sources. They also chose to include their waste, third par ty shipping, air travel, and paper consumption in the measurement under Scope 3. The char ts show their emissions profile as well as the corresponding costs profile . Refrigerants and landfilled waste stand out in the emissions profile as the largest emissions sources, accounting together for over 80 tonnes of CO2e emissions. Emissions from natural gas were also significant: 24 tonnes of CO2e. Paper use and third par ty shipping were small and together added up to under 1% of emissions. This was because the majority of the company’s products were getting picked up by a distributor located only 15 km away, and paper use was minimal. Electricity emissions represented just 5% of the total emissions measured due to the low emission intensity of the BC’s electric grid but presented, by far, the highest cost – over $28K a year.

High refrigerant emissions immediately attracted the company’s attention to the aging refrigeration system. Leaks in the system were not only emitting over 40 tonnes of CO2e (equivalent to consuming 100 barrels of oil), and costing the company $11,000 per year in maintenance but also reducing the refrigeration system’s efficiency, in turn increasing energy use and cost.

As par t of its Climate Smar t cer tification, Climate Smar t advisors worked with the company to develop a reduction plan that included a business energy audit, examining the refrigeration system, composting their organic waste, and switching to a more energy-efficient forklift. The company also worked on a number of smaller initiatives including minimizing packaging for their products, designing boxes so that more cases would fit on the pallet to reduce the number of shipments required, and printing product information directly on boxes rather than having printed paper labels.

FOOD MANUFACTURER

25$3Mrefrigerants, wasteenergy audit, refrigeration system audit, composting

full-time equivalent employees (FTEs)

annual revenue

key emission sources

top reduction strategies

133 tonnes CO2e

Carbon Emissions6

5%

2418%

11%

1612%

4332%

<1<1%

4232%

$57,800Costs

$28,60050%

$6,80012%

-0%

$4,0007%

$7,20012%

$200<1%

$11,000

Electricity Natural Gas Third-PartyShipping

Air Travel LandfilledWaste

Paper Use Refrigerants

19%

Note: refr igerants include total maintenance costs


This food distribution company came to Climate Smar t with the intention of developing a strong sustainability commitment within the organization. The company’s Scope 1 and 2 emission sources included natural gas, electricity, fleet fuel, and refrigerants. In addition to these key sources, the company measured emissions from their sales representatives’ travel, waste, and paper consumption. Not surprisingly, fuel used by the company’s fleet was its largest emission source. Another large por tion of the emissions profile was refrigerants – refrigerants leaking from the cooling systems released greenhouse gases equivalent to 711 tonnes of carbon, or 80,000 gallons of gasoline consumed. Emissions from sales representatives’ reimbursed business travel in personal vehicles “won bronze” at 188 tonnes.

Quantifying greenhouse gas emissions helped the company prioritize actions in their sustainability plan. In their first year with Climate Smar t, they developed a company timeline filled with specific action steps aimed at reducing their footprint. Shor t-term strategies included “Smar t Routing” – a fleet initiative aimed at smar ter planning of distribution routes to minimize the amount of driving. Company drivers were trained in better driving habits and a company-wide non-idling policy was established. Company trucks were set to stop the engine after two minutes of idling. They are now investigating options for retrofitting their refrigeration equipment to avoid leaks; using their waste cooking oil to produce biodiesel for the fleet; and purchasing hybrid or electric deliver y trucks. Installing a GPS tracking system on all deliver y vehicles is also a par t of their long-term carbon reduction strategy. In future, they plan to address sales team travel, which is costing the company over $200K every year in reimbursements by investigating options for rewarding sales representatives for purchasing fuel efficient vehicles, reviewing sales territories to minimize driving, and researching the feasibility of having drivers act as sales representatives for remote areas.

FOOD AND BEVERAGE DISTRIBUTOR

80not availablefleet, refrigerantsgreen routing, refrigeration system retrofit, driver training


annual revenue



251%

381%

1,32856%

1888%

803%

171%

71130%

$95,00013%

$7,0001%

$410,00053%

$231,00030%

1% 1%;$9,000 $9,000 $10,000

1%

2,386 tonnes CO2e

Carbon Emissions

$771,000Costs

Electricity Natural Gas Fleet BusinessTravel (Road)

LandfilledWaste

Paper Use Refrigerants

Note: refr igerant costs represents the amount spent on topped-up refr igerant


Emission profiles of food processors and distributors var y widely from business to business. The five char ts below show emissions profiles for five Climate Smar t businesses: a brewery, three food manufacturers, and a food distributor. The profiles highlight five key emission sources for these businesses: electricity, natural gas, fleet, landfilled waste, and refrigerants. Businesses that use natural gas for process heat (breweries, coffee roasters, meat products manufacturers, etc.) often

find that natural gas is the largest contributor to their emissions profile . The landfilled waste por tion of emissions varies considerably among these businesses, with some producing little waste (brewery and the ethnic foods manufacturer examples below), and others, such as the sauce and meat products manufacturers, discovering that waste is their second largest emission source. Refrigeration emissions can be very high for food distributors operating large refrigerated storage

spaces and refrigeration units on their vehicle fleet, as well as manufacturers with large cold storage spaces. Fleet emissions are significant for distributors and processors delivering their own product. If you are a food manufacturer or distributor, we invite you to consider which profile best corresponds to your business and where your oppor tunities for emission reductions and savings might be found.

?Brewery Meat Products

ManufacturerEthnic FoodsManufacturer

SauceManufacturer

FoodDistributor

Your Company

Carbon emissions profiles: food processing and distributionElectricity Natural Gas Fleet Landfilled

WasteRefrigerants

WHAT DOES YOUR BUSINESS EMISSION PROFILE LOOK LIKE?


HOW FOOD PROCESSORS AND DISTRIBUTORS CUT CARBONAs par t of obtaining Climate Smar t cer tification, businesses, with the help of Climate Smar t client advisors, develop a reduction plan – a set of strategies that they are currently implementing or planning to implement in the near future. The char t summarizes the areas businesses are tackling in their plans.

Strategies aimed at reducing emissions from landfilled waste are the most popular – near ly 70% of businesses take action to improve their waste diversion. This includes composting, expanding recycling programs to add materials like soft plastics and Styrofoam, as well as more creative strategies like introducing reusable totes for product deliveries. Companies not only tackle waste coming from their operations, but also product waste – one in five companies implemented initiatives to reduce their product packaging and/or make it easily recyclable.

Reducing paper use is another common strategy. Over 40% of businesses include actions to reduce paper use in their Climate Smar t reduction plans. While paper is a relatively small emission source for the food processing and distribution sector, it is often an area of “low hanging fruit”. For example, a food manufacturer star ted printing labels directly on shipping boxes instead of printing a paper label for each box, and another company switched to paper less invoicing.

Over 40% of businesses are implementing fleet behaviour change strategies like driver training, anti-idling policies, advanced route planning, and GPS fleet tracking for improved routing efficiency and to monitor drivers’ behaviour. These are often no- or low-cost measures that can significantly reduce fuel expenses and emissions.

Electricity simple equipment and behaviour change strategies are implemented by near ly half of the businesses. This includes initiatives such as: a complete plant shut down policy at the end of the day, installing motion sensors in areas with intermittent occupancy, or improving cold room insulation – low- or no-cost strategies that bring easy wins and power bill savings. Additionally, one in five companies opted for larger capital investments to reduce emissions from electricity or natural gas.

Chosen reduction strategies: food processing and distribution

Behaviour Change

Simple Equipment

Capital Equipment

Behaviour Change

Simple Equipment

Capital Equipment

Reduce Paper Use

Diverting Waste

Packaging

Reducing Business Travel

Alternative Staff Commuting

Targeting Third-Party Shipping

Driver Behaviour Change

Capital Replacement

Vehicle Fuel Switching

45%

45%

19%

17%

33%

26%

43%

69%

21%

10%

43%

21%

19%

31%

26%

Heat

Transport and equipment

Waste

Electricity


Albion Fisheries Ltd. is Western Canada’s largest wholesale seafood distributor and is ver y conscious of our impact on the environment. Since we began measuring our carbon emissions in 2011, we have been working to reduce them by taking steps like: switching to cold water to wash equipment, aligning deliver y orders to reduce their frequency, routing trucks for optimum fuel efficiency, reducing internal paper use, and working with suppliers to minimize incoming packaging at all of our locations. In our Haida Gwaii location, Albion began offering off cuts from our seafood production to local crab boats as bait and to local farmers as fer tilizer. This project has diverted approximately 3,000kg of waste from the landfill and reduced emissions by more than four tonnes of CO2e. More recently, we relocated to a new, energy efficient facility in Richmond that was built with innovative technology focused on reducing our energy use.”

In 2013 we contracted Climate Smar t to do an in depth analysis measuring the GHG emissions associated with the production, distribution and destruction of traditional 750mL glass wine bottles versus the equivalent useful lifecycle of our re-usable stainless steel 19.5L wine keg. Climate Smar t considered the GHG emissions that take place from raw material extraction all the way through recycling the waste materials at the end. This analysis found the freshTAP wine packaging and distribution service emits 35,486 fewer kgs of CO2e over the useful life of the wine kegs versus the equivalent volume (60,000 L) of wine in light-weight glass wine bottles, or 68% fewer GHG emissions.”

Guy DeanVice President - Import/ExportAlbion Fisheries, Richmond, BC

Mike MacquistenCEOFreshTAP & Vancouver Urban Winery, BC

““


Following our first greenhouse gas inventory measured with Climate Smar t, we developed a reduction plan that included implementing a “Green Routing” initiative for our goods deliver y, promoting behaviour changes amongst our staff around energy use and commuting to work, diver ting waste– par ticular ly meat contaminated plastics and Styrofoam–away from the landfill, and reducing paper consumption. In 2014 we measured our second GHG emissions inventory. This measurement provided us with the oppor tunity to see how our emissions reduction strategies had impacted our carbon footprint. We discovered that our effor ts had in fact been successful, generating a 12% overall reduction!”

We are committed to running a sustainable business in all ways. Since we star ted working with Climate Smar t to measure and reduce our emissions in 2010, we implemented a number of initiatives to reduce our carbon footprint. This includes par ticipating in the renewable natural gas program with For tisBC, purchasing renewable energy cer tificates to offset our electricity use, and recently replacing our roaster with the Loring Smar t Roaster model. This upgrade is expected to reduce our natural gas emissions, which is our biggest emission source, by up to 80%.”

Victoria PetrenkoSpecial Projects AssistantTrimpac Meat Distributors, Vancouver,BC

Paul StratfordChief Financial OfficerEthical Bean, Vancouver, BC

““

Tantalus is BC’s first LEED cer tified winery and through Climate Smar t we are working to fur ther reduce our emissions through a “Just Do It” campaign, which includes maintaining a no idling policy throughout winery operations and public areas, reducing paper consumption and encouraging sustainable commuting practices.”

“Jane Hatch General Manager Tantalus Vineyards, Kelowna, BC


LEFT COAST NATURALS

Sustainability as par t of our DNA impacts everything we do. It can make for some difficult decisions, but we believe we’re only successful if we’re being good to people and the planet, which is why we hold one another accountable to higher, and what we see as necessar y standards.”

“

Ian WalkerPresident


Left Coast Naturals has been committed to sustainability since day one, striving to benefit all of the “3Ps”: people, the planet, and the company’s financial prosperity. Since they got their star t star t in 1996, the award winning processors and distributors of organic and natural foods have made sustainability “the core factor in all decisions”.

Today, Left Coast Naturals distributes 27 brands and processes three of their own: Hippie Foods, Left Coast Bulk Foods, and Skeet & Ikes. They have a fleet of trucks, a 32,000-square-foot warehouse, a 10,000-square-foot production facility, and ship foods from all over the world into their Burnaby facilities and back out in the products they sell.

When Left Coast conducted a careful examination of the company’s overall environmental footprint, they learned that 80% of their impact occurs outside of their facilities, in the production and transpor tation of the food they sell.

This realization led to a number of initiatives along the company’s supply chain, including: the development of a “scorecard” to evaluate suppliers’ practices; suppor t for smaller growers that practice sustainable farming; a commitment to become entirely GMO-free (genetically modified organisms) by the end of 2015; a reduction in

Results achieved:

15% fewer emissions from natural gas, per FTE24% fewer emissions from vehicle fuel, per FTE~12% costs saved on waste removalSupplier “scorecard” to evaluate supplier practices

package sizes to minimize materials used; and a shift from trucking to bringing in supplies by less carbon-intensive marine and rail shipping where possible.

Specific to carbon emissions within their own operations, the Left Coast team has been working with Climate Smar t since 2012 to more systematically track, and improve upon, the impact of their ongoing effor ts to reduce emissions. Over two years, while growing by more than 28% (number of employees), the company has implemented several ideas gathered from Climate Smar t staff and fellow Climate Smar t cer tified businesses to lower the carbon intensity of their operations. For example:

• Byinstallingplasticcur tainstoreduceheatloss when loading bay doors are open, natural gas consumption decreased 15% per full-time equivalent employee (FTE).

• Occupancysensorsinareasofintermittentuse, exterior dawn-to-dusk controls, and a continued conversion to high efficiency options have helped to dramatically reduce energy consumed by lighting.

• Emissionsfromvehiclesdropped24%perFTEthrough initiatives such as reduced idling time and improved route planning.

• Reviewinghowwastewashandledinthecorporate offices led to the consolidation of waste removal with one provider, which allowed for the addition of a formal organic composting service while also reducing the cost of waste management by approximately 12%.

Left Coast also provides employee benefits that suppor t social, environmental, and financial sustainability. For example, to encourage less carbon-intensive commuting choices, the company

provides an incentive of $40 – $120 per month for carpooling, taking public transit, and biking/walking, respectively. 55% of employees now get to work by alternative modes of transpor tation.

Climate Smar t cer tification has helped Left Coast Naturals demonstrate their leadership within the food industr y and across sectors. Climate Smar t enabled Left Coast to understand their carbon intensity and communicate the impact of their reduction initiatives. This contributed to the company’s selection in April 2014 for the Canadian Health Food Association’s inaugural Sustainability Award. Being “climate smar t” has also helped improve Left Coast Naturals’ score as a cer tified Benefit Corporation, or “B Corp”, against rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency.

CASE STUDY

For a video with additional detail on the story of Left Coast Naturals’ full environmental footprint, visit: www.leftcoastnaturals.com


VAN HOUTTE COFFEE SERVICES

It was ver y impor tant for us to work with Climate Smar t to measure our emissions and create a benchmark so that we can measure whether we have truly improved. After three years of tracking emissions, we have reduced our emissions by 18% and realized a savings of more than $100,000 annually.”

“

Morten SchroderVP Operations – BC


Van Houtte Coffee Services’ British Columbia operations directly ser vices 10,000 customers, including offices, enter tainment centres, and convenience store locations. Van Houtte’s vice president of operations first spearheaded the measurement of the company’s carbon emissions for locations in Coquitlam, Kamloops, Cranbrook, Prince George, Vancouver Island, and Kelowna for the 2009 calendar year.

Since then, Van Houtte has realized a reduction of 256 tonnes CO2e —more than 18% of their 2009 baseline annual emissions—and more than $100,000 in cost savings annually. Some of the emissions reductions initiatives under taken to date include: implementing a no-idling policy; optimizing truck fleet routes by conducting eco-driver training and installing GPS units on all trucks; establishing a robust recycling program; upgrading its lighting systems; reducing paper use and purchasing paper with 100% post-consumer recycled content.

One of Van Houtte’s most compelling emissions reduction projects has been the retrofit of 28 conventional gasoline cube-vans to a hybrid gasoline-propane fuel system. Propane costs less than gasoline, and produces considerably less GHG emissions per distance travelled (~35% less expensive, and ~25% less GHG emissions). With fuel-conscious driving habits, Van Houtte has found that the vehicles are capable of operating using propane 95% of the time, and gasoline for only 5% of their driving time. With an approximate cost of $5,000 to retrofit each vehicle, the investment was paid for in one year.

As a company continually striving to find fur ther areas of efficiency, Van Houtte has made a conscious effor t to reinvest their savings in additional projects, such as purchasing hybrid and electric cars for sales staff, improving end-of-life recycling for its coffee machines and water coolers, performing lighting retrofits at locations outside the Lower Mainland; and continuing to educate and engage employees to build a culture of conservation.

CASE STUDY

Results achieved:

256 tonnes CO2e (>18%) fewer emissions, annually

$100,000+ cost savings, annually

Van Houtte Coffee Services also demonstrates their leadership in business-to-business engagement and sharing of knowledge. The company has reduced paper use simply by surveying clients and switching many accounts over to paper less e-statements. In speaking with another Climate Smar t business, Van Houtte’s vice president learned about using cardboard baling machines. Installing one in the warehouse, Van Houtte has now cut down significantly on the frequency of cardboard pick-ups. As well, Van Houtte now gets paid per tonne for their baled cardboard, helping to offset the cost of recycling and processing waste. Van Houtte’s experience and willingness to share lessons learned with others has inspired many Climate Smar t businesses to look into driver training, vehicle fleet fuel conversion, and other strategies to reduce emissions and improve their operations.

Carbon Emissions:Van Houtte Coffee Services, BC

2010

2011

2012

2009

-18%


FOOD RETAIL


Food retail in BC includes over 4,400 businesses and employs over 75,000 people, contributing 2.9 billion dollars to the province’s GDP. This sector’s emissions from electricity, natural gas use, fleets, and waste amount to over 180,000 tonnes of CO2e – equivalent to all the cars in Vancouver idling for five days. If businesses in this sector collectively reduced their emissions from just these four activities by 5% (the average annual reduction achieved by Climate Smar t businesses), it would translate into a reduction of near ly 9,000 tonnes of CO2e, and $6.5M saved in operating costs. By 2020, this reduction would add up to a 26% reduction: 48,000 tonnes of CO2e reduced and $35M saved in operating costs*.


BY THE NUMBERS

In this section, we showcase data from innovative BC businesses that have become Climate Smar t cer tified since 2008. We present the carbon management drivers cited by these businesses, look at the key emission sources for the sector, and highlight the reduction initiatives implemented by these businesses. By sharing the wealth we have gathered: ideas generated and tested by Climate Smar t businesses working to improve the way they do business, we hope to inspire more organizations to take action and star t managing and reducing their carbon emissions.


personal interest and education cost savings community and

sector leadership



Among food retailers, one out of every two businesses entering the Climate Smar t program cites education as a driver. With the practice of carbon management still relatively new and the subject of climate change appearing on the news more and more often, companies and individuals are looking to, first of all, educate themselves on this new business practice.

Cutting costs is also a leading driver with near ly 50% of the businesses choosing it as a factor in their decision to star t managing carbon emissions. In the highly competitive food retail industr y, constantly looking for ways to keep the operating costs down is a crucial practice.

48%

48%

30%

30%

35%

17%

17%

Supply chain / other requirements

4%

9%


CSR mandate



Education

Employee retention

0%




“Why are you choosing to manage carbon?”Survey of food retail businesses on entering Climate Smart program

4%Customer / investor / partner demand


Community and sector leadership as well as marketing are cited as drivers by one out of three businesses, with supermarkets and grocery stores looking to improve their brand image and to be seen as a leader in their industr y when it comes to environmental stewardship.

Building on existing green practice was cited by over 30% of businesses as many companies entering the Climate Smar t program already had a number of environmental initiatives underway and wanted to quantify their progress. We have been a leader in the Climate Smar t program,

continually measuring year-over-year since 2009 and implementing numerous reduction strategies, including the sourcing of 100% recycled packaging materials, using carbon neutral, hybrid and trike couriers, and investing in lighting upgrades.”

We’d been working to improve our performance for a long time, but measuring was critical to letting us see the oppor tunities in front of us. It was a real eye-opener.”

Saul BrownPresidentSaul Good Gift Co., Vancouver, BC

Herman PoonAdministration ManagerT&T Supermarket Inc., Richmond, BC

“

“


CARBON EMISSIONS IN FOOD RETAIL

What are the carbon emissions of a grocery store? This depends on many factors such as, of course, the size of the store, cooling equipment used, the store’s recycling program, etc. The profile shown here is an illustration of what a grocery store can expect to discover from its GHG emissions inventory. Costs are presented along with emissions for various activities like natural gas use, fleet fuel consumption and others, highlighting how carbon reductions are, more often than not, tied to substantial cost savings to the business.

This grocery store’s direct emission sources included natural gas, refrigerant leaks, and fuel for its vehicle fleet. In addition, the company measured emissions from electricity use, landfilled waste, and office paper consumption. The largest emissions source for the business was landfilled waste – the store was sending over 65 tonnes of waste to the landfill each year, resulting in 96 tonnes of carbon emissions produced – an equivalent of one and a half Science World Domes, or 20 hot air balloons, filled with carbon dioxide.

Tackling landfilled waste became a priority in the store’s reduction plan that they developed with their Climate Smar t advisor. The company prioritized expanding their organic recycling program to diver t more waste from the landfill. The store also placed reusable produce bags beside the plastic produce bags. While the plastic produce bags were not included in their GHG inventory, the store saw it as a way to engage customers and demonstrate their environmental commitment.

The company also targeted their fleet emissions by performing a review of fleet routing to maximize efficiency.

Electricity took third place as the highest emission source. In addition, electricity corresponded to the highest cost of all activities measured – the company’s power bill was at over $75K a year. This led the business to replace the store’s lights with LEDs, taking advantage of BC Hydro Power Smar t incentives, and install timer-controlled thermostats on the air conditioning units in the store. This technology turned the units off when the store was closed, resulting in considerable savings on their electricity bill.

GROCERY STORE AND CAFE

75$20Mwaste, fleet, electricitylighting retrofit, fleet routing review, expanded recycling program


annual revenue



2413%

1911%

2916%

9654%

53%

53%

$78,00063%

$9,0007%

$11,0009%

19%

2%

$24,000

$2,000

$200<1%

177 tonnes CO2e

Carbon Emissions

$124,000Costs

LandfilledWaste

Paper Use RefrigerantsElectricity Natural Gas Fleet



These pie char ts show emission profiles of five Climate Smar t food retail businesses, from single grocery stores to grocery chains, highlighting the key emission sources: electricity, natural gas, fleet, refrigerants, and landfilled waste.

These char ts show that typically, landfilled waste and natural gas are the highest emission sources for a grocery store. Refrigerant emissions var y greatly between these stores, and can comprise up to 80% of the emissions profile as we can see in middle top char t. Electricity usually accounts

for a relatively small por tion of a store’s footprint, because of the low emission intensity of BC’s electricity grid. However, electricity usually represents the highest cost, and electric upgrades often offer a shor t payback and can significantly reduce operating costs.

?Grocer A Grocer B Grocer C Grocer D Grocer E Your Company

Carbon emissions profiles: food retailElectricity Natural Gas Fleet Landfilled

WasteRefrigerants



HOW FOOD RETAILERS CUT CARBONFood retailers have ample oppor tunity to reduce emissions from their operations. From “low-hanging fruit” such as turning off lights at night, to more capital intensive upgrades such as waste heat recapture from refrigeration systems, these businesses are making a difference while reducing their operating costs at the same time.

The char t shows the summary of emission reduction strategies implemented by Climate Smar t businesses following their first year of measurement. Waste diversion and low-cost electricity upgrades as well as behaviour change related to electricity stand out as the most widely adopted initiatives. These strategies include installing night covers for open refrigerated display cases, turning lights off at night, installing motion sensors in seldom-used areas such as bathrooms, and reminding staff to keep cooler doors closed.

Paper use, staff commuting, and heat reduction initiatives, as well as capital electric upgrades are also topping the list. Stores encourage their employees to par ticipate in Bike to Work Week, and even offer financial incentives. One store encouraged their employees to use their health bonus to suppor t cycling: “One employee who was previously a non-cyclist put her health bonus toward a new cruiser bike, and is now commuting by bike 75-100% of the time!”

Near ly a third of the businesses are tackling their natural gas use through both simple initiatives, such as separating night and day time temperatures, and capital upgrades.

Chosen reduction strategies: food retail

Behaviour Change

Simple Equipment

Capital Equipment

Behaviour Change

Simple Equipment

Capital Equipment

Reduce Paper Use

Diverting Waste

Packaging





Capital Replacement


50%

67%

25%

25%

25%

17%

33%

58%

8%

0%

17%

17%

0%

33%

8%

Heat


Waste

Electricity

Did you know?

Carbon dioxide, despite being a greenhouse gas, can be put to good use: it is becoming a new refrigerant of choice in North America. With its global warming potential thousands of times less that of commonly used refrigerants, it has potential to significantly reduce emissions in retail.

Today, while ozone-depleting HCFC refrigerants like R-22 are being phased out, the replacement HFC gases still have very high global warming potentials: thousands of times that of carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide refrigeration systems, in addition to their environmental benefits, offer significant energy and cost savings. Canada’s second largest grocery chain, Sobeys, is committed to transitioning all their stores to carbon dioxide refrigeration systems.


49th Parallel Grocery Stores is a family owned and operated business with four convenient-sized full ser vice grocery stores in beautiful central Vancouver Island. We have been managing our emissions with Climate Smar t since 2010, and have identified strategies to reduce our emissions in both the shor t and long term. We are performing a corporate fleet review, replacing vehicles with more efficient alternatives where possible, developing more efficient routing, installing recycle bins in all back rooms, initiating double-sided printing options and setting a policy to purchase paper with a minimum 30% recycled content. We completed a lighting retrofit and installed night cur tains on all open refrigeration units. We also plan on educating staff on energy efficient behaviour, investigating alternative refrigerants, performing a waste audit with a goal of reducing waste by 10%, and preparing a supplier preference system for sourcing products locally.”

T&T Supermarkets have long been improving efficiency in their operations. Though ear ly along in the process of carbon measurement, they see the value in quantifying their achievements through calculating their footprint and using it to prioritize projects. They are now investigating the feasibility of switching to alternate fuel systems in their deliver y fleet vehicles. As a major food retailer, T&T are also tackling their organic waste head-on, by testing different on-site waste digester solutions to potentially eliminate the need for waste disposal from their stores.”

Peter RichmondPresident & CFO49th Parallel Grocery Stores, Ladysmith, BC

Herman PoonAdministration ManagerT&T Supermarket Inc., Richmond, BC

““


FOOD SERVICES


Food services include restaurants, bars, cafes, food trucks, coffee shops, catering companies and other establishments ser ving food and beverages. This sector is composed of over 12,500 businesses and employs 153,000 people in BC. Emissions from electricity, natural gas, fleet, and waste for this sector are projected at over 450,000 tonnes of CO2e. If businesses in this sector reduced their emissions from these four key activities by just 5% (the average annual emission reduction achieved by Climate Smar t cer tified businesses), it would lead to a reduction of over 22,000 tonnes of CO2e and savings in operating costs of near ly $6M. In six years, by 2020, these reductions would amount to over 118,000 tonnes of CO2e and $30M in operating cost savings*.


BY THE NUMBERS

In this section, we share the carbon management drivers, typical emission profiles, and reduction strategies implemented by Climate Smar t businesses in the food services sector. We hope that sharing the experience of these innovative businesses will inspire more companies to take action on climate change, make their operations more efficient, and improve the way food is ser ved in BC for years to come.


personal interest and education

building on green practices

marketing and brand lift



Food service businesses are choosing to cer tify as Climate Smar t as a way to improve their brand, cut operating costs, engage with like-minded businesses, and take their sustainability initiatives to the next level.

As public-facing businesses, food service companies look to meet their corporate social responsibility mandates. Attracting and retaining employees is appearing as a factor as well, likely since this is a sector with a normally high employee turnover. Some businesses, especially catering companies, choose to become Climate Smar t cer tified to improve their competitiveness when bidding for contracts and responding to requests for proposals. These companies are facing more and more questions from prospective clients about their sustainability commitment in general and, specifically, their carbon management initiatives.

14%

11%

18%

68%

54%

46%

39%

50%

36%

21%

Customer / investor / partner demand

21%





Education

Supply chain / other requirements

CSR mandate

Employee retention


“Why are you choosing to manage carbon?”Survey of food service businesses on entering Climate Smart program



CARBON EMISSIONS IN FOOD SERVICES

This pub and liquor store came to Climate Smar t looking to “measure our footprint and cut our energy costs”. In mapping out their operations, the company has identified electriciy, natural gas, and vehicle fleet as their Scope 1 and 2 emission sources. They also chose to measure emissions from their waste and staff commuting. When all the data was gathered and entered into the Climate Smar t GHG Management Tool, it became obvious that natural gas use along with their waste are the largest emission sources, accounting together for over 85% of their footprint. While electricity accounted for just 5% of emissions, it was costing the company $45,000 annually, creating a good business case for reduction initiatives.

Using suggestions from their Climate Smar t client advisor, the company decided to install motion sensors in the liquor store cooler and pub washrooms – areas where lights were left on constantly while occupancy was intermittent. To reduce natural gas use, they upgraded their boiler and implemented a turn it off policy for unused burners in the kitchen. To reduce the company car use, they star ted encouraging management to have phone meetings whenever possible, and star ted a campaign to recognize staff that cycled or took transit to work. To cut down on their power bill, the company trained employees to keep the cooler door closed as much as possible. The company is currently looking at replacing their liquor store fridges with an energy-efficient model.

PUB AND LIQUOR STORE

30$6Mnatural gas, wasteboiler upgrade, turn-it-off policy for gas appliances


annual revenue



95%

12965%

42%

4322%

136%

$45,00056%

$27,00033%

$3,0004%

7%

0%

$6,000

$0

199 tonnes CO2e

Carbon Emissions

$81,000Costs

Electricity Natural Gas Fleet LandfilledWaste

Staff Commuting



These char ts show emission profiles of five Climate Smar t businesses in the food services sector. A, B, and C are restaurants, D is a café, and E is a coffee house. The char ts profile six key emission sources for food service businesses: electricity and natural gas, landfilled waste, fleet, refrigerants, and staff commuting. Natural gas stands out as the highest emission source for all

but one company in this group. It is especially high for restaurants, accounting for over 60% of the emissions in all the restaurant profiles presented here. This includes natural gas used for space and water heating as well as food preparation. The next highest emission source for restaurants is waste. Staff commuting is usually relatively low, with restaurant staff often living in close proximity

to their workplace or commuting by transit or bicycle. Electricity emissions are relatively low as well, primarily due to the low emission intensity of BC’s power grid. Refrigerant emissions var y greatly between restaurants, with some restaurants recording no leaks and some, like Company C, measuring significant emissions from refrigeration.

?Restaurant A Restaurant B Restaurant C Cafe Coffee Shop Your Company

Carbon emissions profiles: food servicesElectricity Natural Gas Fleet Landfilled

WasteRefrigerants Staff

Commuting



HOW FOOD SERVICE BUSINESSES CUT CARBON

As par t of their Climate Smar t cer tification, businesses are asked to submit a reduction plan – a list of initiatives they will implement to reduce their carbon footprint. The char t here summarizes the actions taken by the group of food services businesses that have become Climate Smar t cer tified to date.

Electricity is the most popular area tackled by businesses in this group. Most food service businesses identify low capital, easy to implement strategies that provide an immediate reduction of their power bill. This includes behavioural changes such as creating a schedule for operating ovens to maximize efficiency, creating an “end of day restaurant shut down” policy, training employees to turn off unused lights and equipment, etc. Installing simple equipment to reduce power use is another common strategy for this sector : such as replacing bathroom light switches with motion sensors and installing timers on patio heaters.

One in two businesses in this group tackled natural gas use through low-cost initiatives like installing low flow nozzles in the dishwasher area and turning off stove burners when not in use.

Landfilled waste is an area tackled by over 60% of businesses: expanding their recycling program, introducing composting, and organizing staff training on waste separation are some of the initiatives under taken.

All catering companies in the group set out to reduce their fleet emissions through driver training, anti-idling policies, fleet upgrades, and other initiatives.

Chosen reduction strategies: food services

Behaviour Change

Simple Equipment

Capital Equipment

Behaviour Change

Simple Equipment

Capital Equipment

Reduce Paper Use

Diverting Waste

Packaging





Capital Replacement


69%

50%

6%

50%

25%

13%

31%

63%

6%

0%

25%

6%

13%

19%

13%

Heat


Waste

Electricity

Did you know?

Shipping a full container of kiwi fruit from New Zealand to Vancouver by boat emits 4.2 tonnes of CO2e. Shipping this container to a grocery store in Kelowna by truck emits 2.1 tonnes of CO2e. If consumers drive to the store (2.5 km each way) to pick up five kiwis each, these trips will emit 49.3 tonnes of CO2e – over seven times the emissions from shipping the product from New Zealand to a Kelowna grocery store.


Bubby’s Kitchen opened its doors in 2011 and first measured our carbon emissions for 2012, with almost two years of operations under our belts. We are working to reduce our emissions through initiatives such as: installing low-flow water faucets in our dishwashing area and pre-rinsing our dishes with cold, rather than hot water ; composting our solid organic waste with Refuse; having our kitchen grease recycled into biodiesel with GreaseCycle; and looking into installing a culinar y garden that will grow herbs and vegetables for the restaurant. Recently, the restaurant under took the task of changing over our lighting to LED in order to save energy as well as signing up for a new MealShare program, which donates meals to those in need. Our philosophy of sustainability and reducing carbon extends to our menu which procures vegetables and meat locally whenever possible, and includes all hormone-free and naturally raised meats along with free run eggs which is now adver tised along with our other actions on the back of our menu. Like the restaurant itself, reducing our emissions is a work in progress, and one we will continue to take action on, one item at a time.”

At the Listel Hotel we first tackled our greenhouse gas emissions in 2008 by installing solar hot water panels and a heat exchange system to dramatically reduce the amount of natural gas needed to heat domestic water. With that successful carbon- and cost-cutting initiative under our belts, we’ve continued to find ways to reduce our environmental impact. Most recently, we renovated our hotel restaurant to become a model for energy efficiency and achieving zero waste to landfill. Forage opened its doors in November 2012 and has been widely recognized for its leadership in sustainable dining.”

Jesse MargolusRestaurant SupervisorBubby’s Kitchen, Victoria, BC

Jim MockfordGeneral ManagerThe Listel Hotel, Vancouver, BC

““


RECYCLING ALTERNATIVE AND TACOFINO

When you’re in the context of your own local economy […] it’s strategically ver y impor tant to make strong and promising par tnerships with the other groups working in your local economy.”

“

Louise SchwarzCo-Founder and Co-OwnerRecycling Alternative


Organizations large and small are increasingly taking a close look at where they source their materials and with whom they purchase their ser vices (their supply chain) in order to reduce emissions and minimize the overall environmental impact of their products and services. This is the story of a unique collaboration between Climate Smar t businesses Recycling Alternative and Tacofino to do just that.

Vancouver recycling exper ts Recycling Alternative are helping the Tacofino family of food trucks and commissar y restaurant address the company’s carbon emissions from waste and truck fuel, two of their most significant sources, at the same time.

Tacofino launched the first of its Vancouver food car ts in 2011 and has been collaborating with Recycling Alternative since 2013. The par tnership began with Recycling Alternative’s core business ser vice - managing Tacofino’s waste stream – and looking to recover the highest-value raw materials from this waste stream. This encompasses returnables, such as aluminum cans and glass bottles, as well as paper, cardboard and – key for a restaurant – organic waste.

In addition to its recycling ser vices, Recycling Alternative is a co-founder of the Vancouver Biodiesel Co-op and has managed the operations and administration associated with running the pump and fuel supply since its debut. The carbon emissions associated with the recycled biodiesel are 90% less than those associated with ordinar y diesel. Co-op members pay a small premium over regular diesel – presently about 13% - but this still pales in comparison to the cost of conventional gasoline.

For a company like Tacofino – which runs diesel-fuelled food trucks, and produces a fair volume of waste vegetable oil (WVO) both at their commissar y restaurant and their food trucks – Recycling Alternative and the Biodiesel Co-op represent a unique oppor tunity.

Recycling Alternative picks up Tacofino’s WVO along with the rest of their recycling, and this WVO is then conver ted into credits that Tacofino can “recycle” into discounted biodiesel to fuel their Vancouver truck, White Lightning. It’s the business sustainability version of ‘what goes around comes around’.

Tacofino’s and Recycling Alternative’s local green supply chain arrangement extends far beyond the par tnership with each other. Both work with other Climate Smar t food businesses such as meat distributors Trimpac and urban grower Sole Food Farms, as well as with local green economy catalyst, Vancity Credit Union.

Tacofino works hand-in-hand with Foodee, a “corporate meal concierge”, to deliver “meals on wheels” from a wide variety of Vancouver restaurants to businesses throughout the region. The meals are delivered in compostable containers and the “wheels”’ come via the most sustainable method that is logistically feasible, often the Climate Smar t business Shift Deliver y Co-op: Vancouver’s groundbreaking cargo-tricycle deliver y ser vice.

It’s building these types of par tnerships that resonates with Recycling Alternative co-founder Louise Schwarz as the most sustainable overall business plan. “When you’re in the context of your own local economy […] it’s strategically ver y impor tant to make strong and promising par tnerships with the other groups working in your local economy.”

CASE STUDY


FOOD PROCESSORSFreybe Gourmet Foods

Ltd.Genuine HealthHilar y’s Cheese Company Ltd.Left Coast NaturalsMisty Mountain Ind. Ltd.MOTEASNature’s Path/Que PasaNew World Natural Foods/

Ever landOkanagan GroceryOlivieri Foods Ltd.Purdy’s ChocolatierRogers’ ChocolatesSunrise Soya FoodsSuperior Tofu Ltd.True Grain BreadUprising Breads Bakery

At Climate Smar t, we are continually inspired by our entrepreneurs and businesses. They are essential par tners in any plan to overcome the challenges we face today, and help create resilient, regenerative communities that we can proudly call home. If you are a business, we need your help to change the way business is done.

WINERIES, BREWERIES, DISTILLERIES

Bounty Cellars WineryCedarCreek Estate WineryFreshTAPMaple Leaf Spirits Inc.Nelson Brewing CompanyPacific Western Brewing

Company LtdPhillips Brewing Co.Russell Brewing Co.Summerhill Pyramid

WineryTantalus VineyardsTinhorn Creek VineyardsTree Brewing Co.Victoria Spirits

COFFEE ROASTERS AND DISTRIBUTORS

Coffee Bean InternationalCounter Culture CoffeeEthical Bean Coffee Hardy Sales

INVITATION TO BUSINESSES

Start measuring and reducing your footprint

Today more than ever, we need action from businesses to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Get in touch with us today and we will guide you through measuring your footprint, and help your organization develop strategies that will prepare your business for success in the new clean economy.

Call 1-888-688-6283 or email [email protected] today.

Level Ground Trading Co.Nossa Familia CoffeeSalt Spring CoffeeVan Houtte Coffee

Services - BC

DISTRIBUTORSAlbion Fisheries Ltd.Canadian Fishing CompanyDiscovery OrganicsEar th’s Own Food Company

Inc.Oppenheimer GroupPSC Natural FoodsSysco Kelowna Ltd.Trimpac Meat Distributors

RETAILCanadian Springs

(AquaTerra)Choices MarketsCodfathers Seafood MarketCountry GrocerGreater Vancouver

Foodbank SocietyLonsdale Quay MarketNature’s Fare MarketsOtter Farm and Home Co-

operativeRiver MarketSaul Good Gift Co. Inc.Share OrganicsSPUDT&T Supermarket Inc.The Organic BoxThe Whistler Grocery StoreTrilogy Fish Co. Ltd.Whole Foods Market49th Parallel Grocery

RESTAURANTS AND CAFESAJs Organic CafeBlack Stilt Coffee HouseBubby’s KitchenCactus Restaurants Ltd.Chambar Restaurant

CorporationCommon Loaf Bake Shop

Daily Roast Fine Coffee Company Inc.

Great Bear Pub (JAK Group)

Listel HotelPeaceful RestaurantRocky Mountain FlatbreadSpinnakers BrewpubStomping Grounds Coffee

HouseTacofinoThai Away Enterprises Inc.The Wilder SnailVij’sWhite Spot Limited

CATERINGChristine CateringPacific Coast Catering

GroupSavoury City CateringThe Truffles Group Inc.

A thank-you to Conscious Brands for helping to promote low-carbon ways of doing business in the food and beverage sector and sharing the stories of Climate Smar t businesses.

A thank-you to the Listel Hotel for hosting a Climate Smar t member event to launch this brief. The Listel is home to Forage, a pioneer restaurant for responsible management through zero waste effor ts, reduction of energy consumption and suppor t of our local communities, from farmers to fishers, and everything in between.

to our food and beverage industr y clients, for working with us to collectively develop and share the business practices of tomorrow.

A special thank-you

Bolded businesses have recertified with Climate Smart and made an ongoing commitment to sustainability. 36CARBON EMISSIONS IN THE FOOD AND BEVERAGE SECTOR

The B.C . government is recognized internationally as a climate action leader, with a revenue-neutral carbon tax, carbon-neutral provincial government operations and cross-government climate change adaptation strategy.

B.C . has been carbon neutral since 2010, an unprecedented achievement for provincial or state government in Nor th America. Carbon Neutral Government is fundamentally about leadership. We are working to put our government’s carbon emissions house in order as we ask businesses, communities and individuals to do the same. Through Carbon Neutral Government, we are demonstrating viable energy efficiency and conservation technologies, engaging British Columbians with a sustainability message, while working hard to reduce our own carbon footprint. The Province is proud of our achievements to date and wants to recognize the effor ts of all public-sector organizations across B.C .

The Ministr y of Agriculture plays a role in helping the Province achieve its goals of job creation, sustainable communities and green economic development in the context of a changing climate. Our par tnership with the federal government resulted in the five-year Growing Forward 2 agreement that will continue to provide B.C . farmers with risk management suppor t, and includes a $110 million investment in programs that promote innovation, adaptability and sustainable agriculture. Together, we will continue our effor ts to ensure the next generation of British Columbians enjoy a clean and healthy environment, and high-quality, local foods.

Leadingthefightagainstclimatechange

SPONSORS

With appliances like fr yers, griddles and ovens operating all day, it’s no surprise that commercial kitchens use more natural gas per square foot than any other kind of business.* For tisBC, realizing the potential to help this customer segment save energy and money on their operating costs, launched the first ever natural gas Foodservice Incentive Program in Canada in 2012. It’s called Efficiency à la Car te.

The program offers rebates for natural gas cooking equipment, from $200 for an efficient steam cooker, to as much as $3,500 for a rack oven. The rebates are available for when customers are upgrading existing equipment or for new construction projects.

One of Canada’s largest franchises, Pizza Hut, took notice of the rebates when they were building a new store. For controller Steven Cheng, the program made good business sense. “We received a $5,000 rebate from For tisBC for installing high-efficiency conveyor ovens at our new Cloverdale location, reducing our payback period and the store’s monthly utility bills,” says Cheng.

The rebate offsets a por tion of the cost difference between a standard and high-efficiency appliance. As well, par ticipants in the program experience ongoing energy savings over the life of the appliance. Based on this, the payback on investment could be less than one-and-a-half years.

Since 2012, dozens of par ticipants have received rebates through Efficiency à la Car te, reducing their environmental footprint and their energy bills.

Learn more about Efficiency à la Carte. Or for some low-cost ways to save energy in your commercial kitchen, tr y FortisBC’s commercial kitchen energy-saving tips.

Steven Cheng, Controller, Pizza Hut (photo credit: FortisBC)

SPONSORS

Efficiencyinthekitchenwithnaturalgas

* Commercial and Institutional Energy Building Use Summar y Report, Natural Resources Canada, Chart 15: Energy Intensity by Type of Activity

SPONSORS

At Vancity, we measure and manage our carbon footprint, and we’ve suppor ted more than 160 business members to par ticipate in Climate Smar t training.

We’re proud that Rocky Mountain Flatbread Company is both a Vancity business member and a Climate Smar t-cer tified business committed to reducing their greenhouse gas footprint in their restaurants and in their wholesale pizza production. This year we’re assisting Rocky Mountain Flatbread with the installation of an innovative new system that will help them reduce food waste and expand their commitment to local food production.

Dedicated to helping strengthen a sustainable local food system, Rocky Mountain Flatbread Company sources local and organic ingredients to make their award-winning pizzas. They also take great pride in managing their environmental impact by reducing greenhouse gas emissions through waste reduction, sourcing practices and other strategies. All this – and they make great pizzas too!

Thanks to Rocky Mountain Flatbread for 10 years of local leadership in sustainability and GhG reduction.

If you’re a Vancity business member and you want to get climate smar t, ask us about our scholarships for Climate Smar t training. Go to www.vancity.com/climatesmart or contact [email protected].

Vancity partners with Climate Smart to build a green economy

Rocky Mountain Flatbread Company (photo credit: Vancity)

mailto:greenbusiness%40vancity.com?subject=

Vancouver’s Greenest City 2020 Action Plan aims to double the size of the Green Economy and make Vancouver the Greenest City in the World by 2020.

The local food sector is a key par t of this vision of a sustainable future. The huge success of farmers markets helps illustrate the dramatic increase in demand for local food from consumers. Farmers markets increased from three in 2004 to seven summer and one winter in 2013. Vendor sales grew 13 percent from $6.3 million to $7.1 million between 2012 and 2013.

Vancouver’s street food vending scene has experienced a similar renaissance, and the city boasted 120 car ts and 42 mobile trucks in 2013. Vancouver’s 19 small craft breweries were par t of a sector that saw an increase in sales of 40 percent in 2013. Vancouver facilitates access to local food to meet this growing demand through a positive policy environment as well as through suppor t for businesses and entrepreneurs entering this sector.

Increasing Vancouver’s competitiveness and innovation through business sustainability is also key to creating a Green Economy. There are numerous economic advantages to greener business practices, and it all begins with an understanding of how environmental performance relates to your business operations and bottom line. Data from Climate Smar t can help you understand how your business compares with others in your sector. It also highlights the approaches that other leading businesses are using to successfully reduce their costs. These businesses are becoming greener businesses and benefiting from brand lift, employee retention and new clients.

For more information on programs to help you green your business, visit http://vancouvereconomic.com/page/green-business.

Kitsilano Farmers Market (photo credit: City of Vancouver)

SPONSORS

Aiming to make Vancouver the greenest city in the world by 2020

The Vancouver Economic Commission (VEC) is an agency of the City of Vancouver working to strengthen the city’s economic future by supporting existing businesses expansion, attracting foreign

investment and promoting international trade. The VEC works closely with local stakeholders and relevant departments of all levels of government to achieve common goals with the support of peer

organizations, industr y associations and education facilities. In short, the VEC connects local and international businesses to the r ight people.

ADDITIONAL SUPPORT

Sustainability and climate action have long been a par t of the City of Nor th Vancouver’s core values, policies and programs. To build a community resilient to future challenges, we must not only lead by example, but provide oppor tunities for residents and businesses to play a role.

That’s why we’re launching a new initiative called Living City. It’s an oppor tunity to share what we’re doing, connect with others, discuss ideas and help people par ticipate in our climate action effor ts. Living City includes a number of programs and initiatives in five areas: Sustainable Energy, Zero Waste, Transpor tation, Urban Agriculture, and Natural Capital.

It’s about each of us doing our par t and respecting our environment as we coexist to create a Living City. Go to www.cnv.org/livingcity for more information.

The Capital Regional District (CRD) is a “community of communities” committed to working together to create a vibrant, livable and sustainable region for years to come. In practice, this means that our ser vices aim to suppor t a good quality of life as well as a strong, resilient regional economy. It also means that we have a commitment to climate action.

The CRD Climate Action Program philosophy is based on three pillars: engage, reduce and prepare. The program works to suppor t the necessar y shifts in policy, infrastructure, behaviour and planning that are required to create a vibrant, healthy and low-carbon capital region.

For more information, go to www.crd.bc.ca/climatechange.

http://www.cnv.org/livingcity

http://www.crd.bc.ca/climatechange

Copyright © 2014 Climate Smar t Businesses Inc. All r ights reserved.

This publication is protected by copyright and written permission is required to reproduce, store in a retrieval system or transmit in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise).

For more information on Climate Smar t training, cer tification, and data ser vices, contact [email protected]. go to www.climatesmartbusiness.com, or call 1-888-688-6283.

Photo Credits all Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic unless stated otherwise

Front cover : http://www.flickr.com/photos/nseika/7273645896Contents: https://www.flickr.com/photos/roland/214300593Page 1: https://www.flickr.com/photos/wonderlane/6551615031Page 4: https://www.flickr.com/photos/walmar tcorporate/5392935227Page 15: (c) Left Coast Natural, used with permissionPage 17: (c) Van Houtte Coffee Services, used with permissionPage 19: https://www.flickr.com/photos/lyza/49545547Page 27: https://www.flickr.com/photos/kk/4503352387Page 34: (c) Climate Smar t, used with permissionBack cover : https://www.flickr.com/photos/roland/6113612650

Design by Lloyd Lee

A CLIMATE SMART INDUSTRY BRIEFTM

Elizabeth Sheehan Executive EditorAnastasia Lukyanova Analysis, AuthorMichelle Bonner Author, EditorJens Ourom Author

CARBON EMISSIONS IN THE FOOD AND BEVERAGE SECTOR

electronic version

http://www.climatesmartbusiness.com

carbon emissions in the food and beverage sector: a climate

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