Article date:20 October 2009
Written by:Jose Espinosa
The first loaves of bread to carry a carbon label are now on sale across the country.
Sustain, in partnership with the Carbon Trust, carried out the work on behalf of Allied Bakeries to calculate the carbon footprint of three Kingsmill products - Great Everyday White, Great Everyday Tasty Wholemeal and 50:50.
Greenhouse gas emissions from each stage of the products' lifecycles were assessed, from growing and milling the wheat to baking, packing, transporting, use and disposal.
Great Everyday White and Everyday Tasty Wholemeal were calculated to have carbon footprints of 1.3kg CO2 emissions per 800g loaf and 50:50 came in at slightly less with 1.2kg.
Dr Jean-Yves Cherruault, environmental accounting manager at Sustain, said: "The food we consume is a significant contributor to global warming and, when products are produced on large scale, it's important to identify where carbon can be cut out from their lifecycles.
"We've been able to identify 'hotspots' to establish which parts of the process emit most greenhouse gases and where the opportunities are for the biggest carbon savings."
In order to retain The Carbon Trust's Carbon Reduction Label, the company must show a reduction of the carbon footprint within two years.
The calculations were assessed according to PAS 2050 - the UK Government's widely accepted carbon footprint standard before being audited by The Carbon Trust.
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