After two consecutive years of neutralizing emissions originating in the international transport of its organic apples, Chilean exporter Copefrut is receiving the CarbonNeutral® Product certification from Climate Impact Partner. Copefrut calculated, mitigated and offset greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the cradle-to-door life cycle of the first customer for its organic apples.
Copefrut's organic apples became the first carbon-neutral certified agricultural product in South America under the CarbonNeutral standard - considering the stages of the life cycle from obtaining raw materials, agricultural activities, packaging and storage to international market transportation. "This certification not only demonstrates our commitment to the environment and the sustainable development goals that we adhere to with our sustainability policy but also reflects an exercise in consistency with what organic production means,” says Andrés Fuenzalida, general manager of Copefrut.
Left to right: Ayrton Berna, sustainability analyst; Andrés Fuenzalida, CEO; Carolina Prado, innovation and sustainability manager; Alba Llavona, sustainability specialist; Felipe Casanova, commercial director.
The initiative meets the double objective of collaborating with the development of an agriculture that is increasingly sustainable but also more transparent. “The agricultural sector has a significant impact in terms of emissions at a global level and Copefrut, through its carbon neutrality program, is contributing to its mitigation,” says Felipe Sepúlveda, executive director and founding partner of Carboneutral Chile. “This sets a very relevant precedent in the sector. It directly contributes to generating not only positive impacts associated with climate change, but also its carbon neutrality program contributes to generating a positive impact on 15 of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.”
The result of measuring and neutralizing the total gross emissions generated in 2023 from Copefrut's organic apples is equivalent to avoiding emissions from the full charge of almost 200 million cell phones or from the electricity consumed in a year in more than 300 homes. Copefrut's offset portfolio is made up of carbon credits from two Latin American projects: a wind power project in the Biobío region of Chile; and a REDD+ project in the state of Acre in the Brazilian Amazon rainforest, which aims to prevent the deforestation of hundreds of thousands of hectares, protecting one of the most biodiverse habitats in the world.
"The certification of this product makes us especially proud since we firmly believe that mitigating the environmental impact of our operations is not enough if we do not include our indirect emissions," added Fuenzalida. “We seek to provide quality of life by sharing fruits with the world and embracing responsible environmental initiatives that powerfully and urgently address the current climate crisis.”
For more information:
Jodean Robbins Duarte
Copefrut
solutionsassociatesint@gmail.com
https://www.copefrut.com/en/