Reducing carbon emissions in the food industry through a pragmatic approach

What concrete actions can we take for a carbon-neutral food and drink industry in Europe? What are industries in the EU doing to meet the zero net emissions target? What can policy-makers do to speed up the process? These were the questions on the table at a EURACTIV virtual conference on 26 October on achieving a carbon-neutral food and drink industry, co-organized by FoodDrinkEurope.

Explaining their views on the measures that the food industry must take to achieve carbon neutrality were Yolanda Garcia Mezquita, Deputy Head of Unit at the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Energy, Olivier Dubois, FAO Senior Natural Resources Officer and Coordinator of the Energy Programme, Faustine Bas-Defossez, External Impact Director at the Institute for European Environmental Policy and Chris Daly, Chief Sustainability Officer for Europe at PepsiCo.

“Energy efficiency is essential to achieve the goals of the EU Green Deal,” said Garcia Mezquita. “Industry sources estimate that food production from farm to fork represents 30 percent of total carbon emissions within the EU, observing that the “Fit for 55 package is a combination of EU policy measures addressing energy, climate and transport”.

FAO’s Olivier Dubois explained that it is crucial to collaborate across sectors and to address carbon emissions across the entire food value chain. “Synergies are needed across sectors, to create incentives – also economic ones – to diminish dependency on fossil fuels,” he noted. “The current use of energy in food chains is unsustainable, as fossil fuels remain the main sources of energy.”

Other speakers from the industry talked about pragmatic approaches to reducing carbon emissions, by influencing consumer choices and focusing on better manufacturing techniques and less carbon intensive products, while organizing sustainable marketing campaigns and other initiatives.