IFCO, the world’s leading provider of Reusable Packaging Containers (RPCs) delivered over 2 billion reusable packaging shipments of fresh produce, meat, poultry, seafood, eggs, bread, and other fresh grocery products during 2022. With a circular economy business model based on share-reduce-reuse principles, IFCO enabled its supply chain customers to achieve substantial environmental savings.
In comparison with single-use packaging alternatives, IFCO RPCs reduce carbon emissions, water and energy usage, solid and food waste generation, and timber consumption. By sharing and reusing IFCO RPCs across global fresh product supply chains, in 2022 IFCO customers saved:
- 614,072 metric tons of CO2e – equivalent to driving to the moon 8,900 times
- 11.8 million cubic meters of water – equivalent to 4,736 Olympic sized pools
- 42,214 terajoules of electricity – enough to power over 5.2 million electric vehicles for a year
- 339,116 metric tons of solid waste – equivalent to 41,535 truckloads of waste
- 55,140 metric tons of food product waste – equivalent to over 88 million meals
“Two billion trips at a global scale is a monumental accomplishment. The magnitude of the environmental savings created through our circular business model reflect IFCO’s ability to achieve our purpose of making the fresh grocery supply chain sustainable and our capacity to enable our customers to achieve their own sustainability goals.”
Michael Pooley, CEO of IFCO:
IFCO calculates and quantifies these science-based savings through independent Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) scientific studies and awards customers with their portion of the savings through annual environmental savings certificates. These certificates help fresh food growers, producers, and retail customers quantify the environmental benefits of IFCO´s solutions and how these contribute to their own sustainability KPIs.
In recognition of its efforts in managing their ESG program, IFCO has recently been recognized by Sustainalytics, a leading independent ESG Risk Rating Agency, as a 2023 ESG Top-Rated Company in Europe.