Meal kit group HelloFresh has launched a new climate labelling initiative to help customers understand the carbon impact of recipes and make more sustainable choices.
The detailed labels will inform customers as to which products generate the least CO2 emissions.
Climate Hero Label
The Climate Hero tag will appear next to recipes that fall under the top five lowest carbon intensive recipes of the week.
Every recipe with this tag generates at least 50% less CO2 emissions than the average HelloFresh recipe.
The initiative has been introduced in direct response to consumers wanting to live more sustainably and coincides with the COP 26 climate change summit in Glasgow.
Using globally respected databases, the climate impact of recipes is measured through analysing a number of key metrics which include the amount of carbon used to produce ingredients and the emissions generated through transportation.
The Climate Hero tag will initially appear next to recipes for customers in Germany and Austria, before the initiative is rooled out into other regions.
Trial Phase
The Climate Hero tag was first shown to a limited number of customers as part of a trial phase in August.
Initial results revealed that recipes with the Climate Hero tag saw a notable increase in customer selection and a reduction in cancellation rates.
Tilman Eichstaedt, HelloFresh’s senior vice president of supply, product and sustainability said, “I’m excited to have seen such a positive reception to the Climate Hero initiative. As a business, it’s important that we play our part in providing information which allows our customers to make more sustainable decisions.
“We have been working incredibly hard at HelloFresh to consistently innovate and find solutions to help us address the climate crisis. From packaging and supply chain to food waste and agriculture, all of our teams are completely focussed on finding ways to limit our impact on the planet. There are several programmes being trialled across the world and I’m excited to share more stories of success over the coming months.”
Sustainability At HelloFresh
Other climate-friendly initiatives from the group include offering customers vegan protein ingredients which have a significantly lower carbon impact than meat products.
Over the course of 2021, over 2 million recipes containing a vegan alternative protein were shipped to its customers globally, with over 700,000 shipped in the last quarter alone.
Since the start of 2021, HelloFresh has been investing substantially to lower its operational carbon impact.
The company expects a 50% reduction already this year for direct and indirect emissions from warehouses globally against a 2019 baseline.
In the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg alone, carbon emissions per box from delivery have been reduced by 50% against a 2018 baseline.
Globally, HelloFresh has committed to halving food waste by 2022, against a 2020 baseline, and reducing the carbon emissions of production facilities by 60% within the same timeframe.
Intensity is measured in grams of food waste per euro of revenue and emissions per euro of revenue.
© 2021 European Supermarket Magazine. Article by Conor Farrelly. For more Technology news, click here. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
