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Check the carbon footprint of your product

Case study: cottage pie

  • In a cottage pie ready-meal, the production of raw materials is the "emission hot-spot", contributing over 60% to the life cycle greenhouse gas emissions (see graph).
  • The influence of manufacturing, retail and the consumer-use phase are about equally important in terms of carbon emissions.
  • In terms of how consumers use the product, using a microwave to heat the cottage pie, rather than an electric fan oven, reduces the carbon footprint of this stage from 9% to 2% of the total greenhouse gas emissions.
  • Not eating the cottage pie (i.e. wasting it) results in unnecessary emissions earlier on in the supply chain.

Businesses can now assess the carbon footprint of their goods and services and play a greater part in fighting climate change.

The new standard – called PAS 2050 (Publicly Available Standard 2050) – has been launched by BSI British Standards, the Carbon Trust and Defra today. It gives companies the tools to analyse a product’s life cycle and assess “embedded” greenhouse gas emissions, from sourcing raw materials through to packaging and distribution, and even includes consumer use and disposal impacts.

Environment Secretary, Hilary Benn said:

“Companies have said they want to be able to count their carbon emissions in a better way, so we have responded. By looking at where the emissions are being created and reducing them, businesses can also save themselves money. 

“You can’t see or count emissions when you buy a product. But consumers want to know that emissions are being cut by businesses and this standard will help businesses to do that. 

“In addition to measuring and reducing the carbon footprint of their products, from clothing, to cosmetics, and cottage pies, businesses will be able to offer advice to the public about the most environmentally friendly ways to choose, use and dispose of their products.”

Graph showing breakdown of emissions in life cycle of a cottage pie.The aim of the new standard is to help businesses move beyond managing the emissions their own processes create and to look at the opportunities for reducing emissions in the design, making and supplying of products. This will then help businesses make goods or services which are less carbon intensive and ultimately develop new products with lower carbon footprints.

Further information

 

Page published: 29 October 2008