Climate-positive production: Water and energy targets lead the charge as circular goals shape business strategy

30 May 2024 --- FrieslandCampina Ingredients and Bioiberica strive to meet climate targets for producing their nutrition portfolios, as well as active and functional ingredients for supplements and nutraceuticals transparently. We catch up with these industry leaders to find out more about their methods of reducing CO2 in their production and the circularity of their business models.

“While the term ‘climate-positive production’ is not specifically defined by an authoritative organization, it is generally understood to mean a company is removing more CO2 throughout the production process than it produces,” Kyle Brookmeyer, head of sustainability at FrieslandCampina Ingredients, tells Nutrition Insight.

“It’s an ambitious aim, and there are many technologies available which can support climate-positive production, such as methods for carbon capture or ensuring carbon sequestration. Because the exact meaning and practices of climate-positive production aren’t clearly defined, it can be a complex aim to achieve.”

“As such, methods are open to interpretation. So, while climate-positive production is an admirable aim, most companies can make a more effective impact by aligning with targets that have robust governance, such as the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).”

Sustainability structure
Bioiberica puts a substantial focus on integrating environmental sustainability into its production process through certifications and the operationalization of its Climate Strategy Report.

Luis Solera, CEO of Bioiberica, explains: “Our view of climate-positive production is reflected by our sustainability-related certifications. Our integrated management system has been certified in ISOs 14001, 50001 and 45001. We have held ISO 14001 for more than 25 years.”

“We’re also involved in the SBTi, within which companies worldwide commit to reducing scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions. Commitments like these are key in ensuring progress toward climate-positive production.”

Last year, the company set up a sustainability committee, bringing together experts from different fields to drive related initiatives across all business areas. “We believe it’s important to involve all departments in this process, as our sustainability goals are impacted by every individual in the company. We want all of our employees to take ownership of the role they play in contributing to our sustainability efforts, from the CEO to the shop floor.”Bioiberica’s circular bioeconomy model is crucial in minimizing its impact on emissions.

“Looking ahead, our Climate Strategy Report outlines how we plan to reduce our environmental impact. The report highlights our key targets, including achieving complete climate neutrality by 2050. We’re proud to have this long-term plan to reflect our commitment to sustainable improvement.” 

How SBTi works in business
The SBTi recommends that possible emissions be cut by more than 90% before 2050 as the most effective and scientifically sound strategy to keep global temperature rise below 1.5°C. For this reason, FrieslandCampina Ingredients prioritizes the comprehensive reduction of its emissions rather than relying on offsetting. 

“This is no easy feat, but it is possible. Aligning with science-based targets provides companies with a clear path to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and drive sustainable growth. At FrieslandCampina Ingredients, we’re aiming to produce net climate-neutral dairy by no later than 2050 as part of our climate plan,” explains Brookmeyer.

The company oversees the complete supply chain from “grass to glass.” The greater oversight on production helps FrieslandCampina Ingredients prioritize the reduction of its emissions where the impact is made.

“The majority of emissions occur at farm level — 24% of all GHG originates from the agricultural industry, with dairy accounting for around 2% of the total. This is a key focus area for us and we’re investing in on-farm initiatives to address emissions head-on,” Brookmeyer details. 

Bioiberica’s circular bioeconomy model is crucial in minimizing the company’s emissions impact. The production process is designed to minimize the consumption of water, energy and auxiliary raw materials. 

“This model allows us to minimize our impact on the environment through an integrated management system that evaluates our impact and identifies areas of improvement year on year,” Solera explains. 

“Our commitment to sustainability is deeply rooted in our business model, which is based on a circular economy, so all the ingredients we produce for nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, animal nutrition, veterinary products and plant health come from byproducts through our vertically integrated supply chain.”

Solera notes: “This means valorizing or reducing waste is integral to our business structure, making sustainability part of our DNA. Through this process of producing high-quality ingredients from high-value byproducts, we prioritize recuperating auxiliaries we use in our manufacturing processes.”

FrieslandCampina Ingredients leverages its oversight of the entire supply chain to reduce carbon emissions.

For example, the company reuses water and ensures its electricity comes from green sources. In addition, the third parties it works with contribute to reducing the climate impact. 

The true measure of climate impact
From Bioiberica’s perspective, carbon footprint is the critical indicator of climate impact, with energy consumption, water usage, waste and natural gas (to generate steam) all contributing to it.

“Water is a significant factor and we are particularly conscious of this given that our team is based in Barcelona (Spain) where we have experienced a series of droughts in recent years. We began to regenerate water in 2006, and now 20–25% of our water is recycled and reused — but we’re always working to increase this figure,” Solera explains.

FrieslandCampina Ingredients views climate change mitigation as a collaborative process and partners with its customers to reduce combined emissions across the supply chain. “For example, we recently collaborated with our customer Danone to reduce GHG emissions,” says Brookmeyer.

“As part of the project, our member dairy farmers undertook a variety of different measures to reduce GHG emissions on their farms, such as optimizing cows’ diet composition, generating electricity using solar panels, windmills and manure digesters and harvesting more protein from their land.” 

The initiative resulted in a 17% decrease in GHG emissions for ingredients supplied to Danone, which was tracked through an Annual Nutrient Cycling Assessment. The company is working on a new proposition to assist other companies in reducing their scope 3 emissions, which includes all other indirect emissions that occur in upstream and downstream activities. 

Brookmeyer notes: “A big focus in our ingredient production has been on energy use in our production sites. Our energy management system continuously measures electric, gas, water, wastewater and steam, all of which have an impact on our environment and, in turn, on our CO2 footprint.”

The system allows FrieslandCampina Ingredients to accumulate more accurate data on its equipment’s performance and energy consumption and to measure 90% of energy-consuming equipment in detail. 

“For example, at one of our production facilities, we’ve been able to determine that there are three main process units that contribute most of the site’s CO2 emissions, and so we’ve put plans in place to improve the efficiency of these units. These insights and subsequent actions are ultimately helping reach our target of reducing our emissions by 63% by 2030,” Brookmeyer concludes.

By Inga de Jong