2Sustain

Last month, Kraft Foods shared results of a pioneering survey that measured the company’s impact on climate change, land and water use.

The multi-year footprinting project—in partnership with Quantis Inc. and reviewed by World Wildlife Fund and academics at the University of Minnesota Institute on the Environment—showed Kraft that its environmental impact goes far beyond the company’s walls.

For example, based on the results of the analysis, Kraft, learned that more than 90 percent of its carbon footprint is outside its plants and offices. Nearly 60 percent is from farm commodities.

The company doesn’t own farms, but the survey certainly supports the work of Kraft’s sustainable agriculture efforts on key commodities to improve crop yields, reduce environmental impacts and improve the lives of farm workers and their families.

In addition, the footprinting work revealed that: (more…)

Kraft Foods is expanding its sustainability goals.

The new goals build upon previous commitments to energy, carbon dioxide, water, waste and packaging reductions and then go a step further to add measurement of transportation and agricultural commodities.

Here’s what Kraft Foods is planning to accomplish by the end of 2015:

• Increase sustainable sourcing(2) of agricultural commodities by 25 percent
• Reduce energy use in manufacturing plants by 15 percent
• Reduce energy-related CO2 emissions in manufacturing plants by 15 percent
• Reduce water consumption in manufacturing plants by 15 percent
• Reduce waste at manufacturing plants by 15 percent
• Eliminate 50,000 metric tons (100 million lbs.)of packaging material
• Reduce 80 million km (50 million miles) from transportation network
• Sustainably source 100 percent of the coffee for the company’s European coffee brands

(These new goals now include Cadbury and LU businesses acquired since 2007.)

It’s worth noting that Kraft Foods has already made some significant reductions. From 2005 through 2010, the company has reduced: (more…)

The Humane Society of the United States says there’s a “national movement” toward using cage-free eggs.

In a press release, HSUS reports that several major corporations and restaurant chains are using cage-free eggs. The list includes: Unilever, Sara Lee, Subway, Wendy’s, Denny’s, Carl’s Jr., Hardee’s, Quiznos, Golden Corral, Sonic, Burger King and private labels from Wal-Mart and Costco.

Now, we can add one more.

Kraft Foods has decided to switch one million eggs within its supply chain to cage-free eggs in 2011. (As an aside, it’s also worth noting that earlier this fall, Kraft Foods was named to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index for the sixth year in a row.)

“We recognize that animal welfare is an issue that resonates with customers, and we’re taking this step to address their concerns,” Steve Yucknut, Vice President of Sustainability at Kraft Foods, said. (more…)

Last Wednesday, a day after Greenpeace released a new report airing fresh allegations that the Indonesian paper firm Asia Pulp and Paper (APP) is “wreaking environmental havoc” in rainforests and peatlands, French retail giant Carrefour announced that it has suspended sourcing of APP products.

APP is part of the Sinar Mas group, and the Greenpeace report, titled How Sinar Mas is Pulping the Planet, maintains that the paper company is destroying Indonesia’s rainforests and carbon-rich peatlands so that it can feed its Sumatran based pulp mills, which then export pulp and paper products to a variety retailers worldwide. (more…)

Kraft Foods, IGA, American Express, and Xerox Corporation have teamed up to help build four high performance, sustainable schoolhouses in the City of Phoenix.

Each of these Green Schoolhouses will be a 5,000 square foot stand-alone, multi-purpose classroom facility that can be used for traditional educational instruction during the day, after-school programs, and community meeting space on evenings and weekends.

And, each will be designed to target a specific K-12 student demographic:  The Loft for high schools students, The Studio for middle schoolers, The Safari for elementary school students, and Tierra Verde, a multicultural K-12 facility. (more…)