By launching its Net Zero Carbon programme, Kuehne + Nagel actively contributes to the reduction of CO2 in transport and logistics worldwide. In addition to the continuous reduction of its own CO2 emissions, the company now offers its customers solutions for reducing the CO2 footprint of their supply chain. With the use of big data and new digital platforms, the selection of transport routes and modes can be optimised from a CO2 perspective.
Kuehne + Nagel announced on Monday it will make all less-than-container load shipments carbon neutral by 2020, according to a press release.
The move is part of the company’s effort to “proactively address the CO2 footprint of the transportation services performed by its suppliers – airlines, shipping lines and haulage companies,” leading to complete carbon neutrality by 2030.
Kuehne + Nagel’s Net Zero Carbon programme leverages three fields of action: detection, reduction and compensation of CO2. The company has started its own nature projects in Myanmar and New Zealand and has invested in various nature-based CO2 compensation projects, where carbon is being taken from the atmosphere. The emission credits obtained are in accordance with the highest international standards.
Over the past years, Kuehne + Nagel has considerably reduced its own CO2 footprint and will continue to pursue its efforts. Ongoing training programmes maintain and expand the environmental awareness of employees. For example, video conferencing increasingly replaces business trips. Direct Kuehne + Nagel CO2 emissions (GHG Scope 1 and 2) that cannot be avoided will be fully compensated as of 2020.
Dr. Detlef Trefzger, Chief Executive Officer of Kuehne + Nagel International AG, comments: “As one of the leading logistics companies worldwide, we acknowledge the responsibility we have for the environment, for our ecosystem and essentially for the people. Today’s announcement is based on a package of measures to fight CO2 emissions and provide sustainable and innovative supply chain solutions – hand in hand with our suppliers and customers. We thus support the aim of the Paris agreement to limit global temperature rise to 1.5°C.”
Kuehne + Nagel uses these tools to set benchmarks for its emissions reduction efforts, saying it supports Paris Agreement targets to keep annual global temperature rise below 1.5 degrees Celsius.
This approach is similar to one Google announced in August, in a blog post saying the company’s shipments “to and from customers” would be carbon neutral by 2020. The tech giant said it would reduce the bulk of its emissions by switching from air freight to ocean freight where possible, which brought per-unit emissions down by 40% between 2017 and 2018. However, it would purchase carbon offsets for the remaining emissions to support a variety of sustainability efforts, and energy consumed by its existing facilities would be offset with renewable energy purchases.
Kuehne + Nagel and Google explain their carbon offset purchases as a means of supporting global sustainability efforts and renewable energy innovation due to the fact that it would be too difficult or impossible to avoid emissions completely.
Sources: supplychaindive.com, newsroom.kuehne-nagel.com, freightcomms.com
