Reducing emissions

Reducing our carbon footprint

Progressively reducing our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions will reduce our contribution to climate change. We have reduced our GHG emissions across our businesses by 27% in the last five years. We know some of our businesses are energy-intensive, so we are setting goals to reduce GHG emissions further. We’re committed to aligning these with international aspirations to accelerate change and with the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement to limit the rise in global temperatures to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius. We're doing this by being more efficient with our energy, scrutinising our energy mix, and investing in renewable energy. Across ABF Ingredients, we reduced our total energy use by 6% between 2018 and 2021.

At Ohly in Germany, they’re working towards being powered by 100% green electricity. PGP’s sites are investing in solar infrastructure to harness the sun’s energy and reduce dependence on fossil fuels.

Championing innovation

We're proud of our teams who actively address climate change issues through their ideas and innovations. For example, using protein engineering and molecular biology, a group of scientists at AB Enzymes created products that enable washing detergents to perform at lower temperatures. This work is vital because the laundry water temperature is the most significant factor affecting energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. The average wash temperature is steadily decreasing, now at an average of 43°C.

Recovering heat

We’re thinking creatively to be smart about our energy use. For example, at AB Enzymes in Finland, the team is finding a way to capture heat from manufacturing activities to reuse as an energy source for the local community. At Ohly in Germany, condensate heat from evaporators is repurposed to sterilise retentate.