Better for the Environment
As a provider of foodstuffs, we have a small direct environmental footprint compared to other players in the food value chain. Nevertheless, we want to be exemplary in what we do and motivate both our customers and our business partners to make their own contribution. In 2020, we therefore began to record key climate figures for our Company for the first time – and already made encouraging progress in certain categories in 2021:
Better for the climate
For example, we significantly reduced those CO2 emissions for which we ourselves are responsible in 2021.We replaced our previously conventional fleet of company cars with electric vehicles and switched the heating at one of our three outlets in Berlin from natural gas to district heating. As a result, our direct CO2 emissions (Scope 1 according to the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, GHG) fell to 3.0 t CO2e in 2021 (prior year: 7.3 t CO2e). We also more than halved our indirect energy-related emissions (Scope 2 according to GHG) to 7.2 t CO2e in 2021 (prior year: 15.1 t CO2e) by increasing the share of renewable energies in our electricity consumption.
CO2-Emissions: Scope 1 [1]
| Emission sources | 2020 (in t CO2e) | 2021 (in t CO2e) | Δ 2020-2021 (in %) |
| Natural gas | 4.1 | 1.8 | -56 |
| Fuels | 3.2 | 1.2 | -63 |
| Total | 7.3 | 3.0 | -59 |
CO2-Emissions: Scope 2 [2]
| Emission sources | 2020 (in t CO2e) | 2021 (in t CO2e) | Δ 2020-2021 (in %) |
| Electricity and district heating | 15.1 | 6.5 | -57 |
| E-vehicles | – | 0.7 | – |
| Total | 15.1 | 7.2 | -52 |
As is common for companies in the food sector, the majority of the emissions related to our business activities (over 99.9%) originate from our value chain (Scope 3 according to GHG) – more precisely from our upstream supply chain: almost all of our Scope 3 emissions in 2021 arose from the cultivation, production and upstream transport of our food products. As a result of sales growth, our Scope 3 emissions therefore also increased to 10.8 thousand t CO2e in 2021 (prior year: 9.0 thousand t CO2e).
CO2-Emissions: Scope 3 [3]
| Emission sources | 2020 (in t CO2e) | 2021 (in t CO2e) | Δ 2020-2021 (in %) |
| Purchased goods and services | 6,905 | 7,533 | +9 |
| Upstream transport | 2,064 | 3,188 | +54 |
| Other sources | 66 | 85 | +29 |
| Total | 9,035 | 10,806 | +20 |
In 2021, our emissions increased by almost 20% across all three scopes – due exclusively to value chain emissions – and thus by slightly more than our sales growth at Group level (12%). However, with a 7% increase in CO2 intensity to 322 t CO2e per €1 million sales (prior year: 301 t CO2e), our overall climate impact in 2021 across all three scopes remained comparatively low: according to a 2021 study on CO2 intensity in the food sector for 14 countries responsible for more than 65% of global food production, the average CO2 intensity in 2014 was just under 557t CO2 per €1 million sales of food products [4].
However, we do not intend to rest on our laurels: with the aid of the X-Degree Compatibility (XDC) model, we plan to set a binding climate target for our own CO2 emissions in 2022 which is in line with the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement. We also want to work with our suppliers to explore ways to
further reduce the emissions of our input products and product transport.
Better Products
We are convinced that plant-based nutrition is an important lever for slowing climate change. With our products, we want to help motivate as many people as possible to try plant-based alternatives and thus make their diet greener, one step at a time. For example, each person can reduce their diet-related CO2 emissions by almost a quarter if they eat meat less frequently and more consciously as a flexitarian, and by as much as almost a half if they adopt a completely vegan diet [5].
Our plant-based foods already account for significantly less CO2 in production than comparable animal products – but this is not enough for us. And we already made good progress in 2021: although the CO2 footprint of the products we purchase increased by almost 9% in absolute terms to 7.5 million t CO2e in 2021 (prior year: 6.9 million t CO2e), it grew less strongly than our sales at Group level (+12%) and thus resulted in an overall reduction in the CO2 intensity of our input products.
With regard to CO2 emissions, we offer our consumers additional transparency at product level: we are one of the few companies worldwide to display precise figures on the respective eco-balance on all our packaging. To this end, we cooperate with the Swiss institute Eaternity, an independent organization that has developed a solution for measuring the ecological footprint of food.
Using the latest methodology and our detailed raw material, supplier and producer data, Eaternity calculates a specific sustainability score for each of our products across a total of four categories: CO2 emissions, water consumption, animal welfare and rainforest protection. In 2019, Veganz was the first food company in the world to systematically display Eaternity scores on all its products.
As far as our basic ingredients are concerned, we regard cocoa, soy and palm oil as the most critical ingredients from an environmental and social perspective. Producers who process them for us use various certifications to guarantee minimum ecological and social standards in their sourcing: for example, 100% of our producers who process palm oil have RSPO certification (Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil) and 64% of cocoa processers have UTZ certification – which is now part of the Rainforest Alliance and confirms sustainable cocoa cultivation – and 28% Fairtrade certification.
Better for the Water – and Better Energy
Due to work-from-home effects, there was a year-on-year decrease in our water consumption to 1,454 m³ in 2021 (prior year: 1,638 m³). As a result, our water intensity also decreased by 20% to 43.4 m³ per €1 million sales (prior year: 54.5 m³). We sourced the water directly consumed by us exclusively in Berlin and thus did not draw any water from areas with a high or very high groundwater stress level according to the World Resource Institute (WRI).
We were also able to reduce our energy consumption in 2021 – primarily through longer work-from-home phases: our electricity and district heating consumption fell to 457 MWh in 2021 (prior year: 476 MWh), both of which we sourced exclusively from external energy suppliers. At the same time, the share of renewable energies in our electricity consumption also increased to 99.4% in 2021 (prior year: 94.0%). And by increasing our use of district heating, we were able to more than halve our natural gas consumption to 9 MWh (prior year: 20 MWh). As a result, our energy intensity fell by 14% to 13.6 MWh per €1 million sales in 2021 (prior year: 15.8 MWh).
In order to firmly establish the economical use of energy at Veganz, we published our Energy Policy in 2022 in which we commit ourselves to raising energy efficiency across all areas of the Company:
Energy Consumptions [6]
| Energy Sources | 2020 (in kWh) | 2021 (in kWh) | Δ 2020-2021 (in %) |
| Electricity and district heating: (thereof: share of fossil energies) | 475,815 6.0% | 456,938 0,6% | -4 -5.4 %-Punkte |
| Natural gas | 19,988 | 8,890 | -56 |
| Total | 495,803 | 465,828 | -6 |
Better Packaging
We not only pay attention to what our products contain, but also everything around them – such as packaging that is as sustainable as possible. In 2021, the total packaging weight of Veganz products sold was 1,083 t (prior year: 926 t), of which the majority – 762 t (prior year: 667 t) – was easily recyclable paper for transport. Our packaging intensity increased slightly to 32.3 thousand kg per €1 million sales (prior year: 30.8 thousand kg).
Packaging materials
| Type of packaging | 2020 (in kg) | 2021 (in kg) | Δ 2020-2021 (in %) |
| Paper (product packaging) | 130,097 | 168,531 | +30 |
| Paper (transport packaging) | 667,105 | 761,576 | +14 |
| Glass | 42,051 | 46,801 | +11 |
| Iron | 1,536 | 2,856 | +86 |
| Aluminium | 74 | 33 | -55 |
| Plastics | 85,188 | 97,386 | +14 |
| Other packaging | 445 | 5,719 | +1,187 |
| Total | 926,496 | 1,082,903 | +17 |
Over the next few years, we want to take further steps towards achieving circularity for our packaging materials. In 2021, for example, 17 of our products already featured packaging made from fully recycled and/or renewable materials – documented, for example, with the Blue Angel or the FSC seal (Forest Stewardship Council). These included popular products such as Veganz Gourmet Block, Veganz Soy Granules and Veganz Wafer Choc Bar Hazel.
With targeted innovations and improvements, we are continuously making our packaging even more sustainable. For example, we use compostable films made from NatureFlex™ material, renewable packaging materials made from cellulose and starch, and already almost exclusively mineral oil-free printing inks.
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[1] Figures for the central warehouse are not included. Some data are estimated, extrapolated or based on prior-year figures.
[2] Market-based figures. Figures for the central warehouse are not included. Some data are estimated, extrapolated or based on prior-year figures.
[3] Figures for the central warehouse are not included. Some data are estimated, extrapolated or based on prior-year figures.
[4] Source: Mrówczy´nska-Kami´nska A, Bajan B, Pawłowski KP, Genstwa N, Zmy´slona J (2021). Greenhouse gas emissions intensity of food production systems and its determinants. PLoS ONE 16(4): e0250995. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0250995
Note: The study reports currency figures in dollars. Our conversion from dollars to euros here is based on the exchange rate of 1 EUR = 1.21 USD as of 31 December 2014.
[5] German Federal Environment Agency (n.d.). CO2 calculator of the German Federal Environment Agency. Retrieved from https://uba.co2-rechner.de/de_DE/ on 18.04.2022
[6] Figures for the central warehouse are not included. Some data are estimated, extrapolated or based on prior-year figures.