In response to the global climate crisis, Swiss coffee trader Volcafe has recently teamed up with Sofies Group, now a part of operations management consulting firm dss+, to tackle the company’s carbon footprint.
The two companies are actively working on a global carbon accounting initiative across Volcafe’s 25+ origin and destination locations. The result of this evaluation will provide a precise minimum measurement of Volcafe’s scope emissions, which is an inevitable first step toward carbon neutrality. Scope 1 entails direct emissions, such as greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted by the company as a result of its building operations, while Scope 2 and 3 include indirect emissions of GHG such as purchased electricity, products, services, and the like.
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dss+ will assist Volcafe in designing a carbon reduction and removal plan, building on its experience with integrating sustainability into different business operations.
“In many countries, supply chains are overtaking farming and land use as the largest contributor to GHG emissions in the agri-food sector.” David Rochat, Director of Sustainability Services at dss+. “We at dss+ are committed to addressing this issue through our work with clients, and proud to support Volcafe as they undertake this important work,” he adds.
“We are very pleased to be working with dss+ as Volcafe undertakes these important steps to measure and tackle our carbon footprint.” Carlos Ortiz, Sustainability Manager and Climate Lead at Volcafe. “Taking stock of our current footprint will help us focus our efforts and reduce emissions more effectively, and also, we will be in a better position to support the climate commitments from our strategic roaster partners. We are all in this climate journey together.”
From 2020 to 2021, Volcafe prepared for this transition by collaborating with researchers from the Zurich University of Applied Sciences to create a coffee-specific tool called “Life Cycle Inventory and Assessment.” The program takes into account over 300 variables in coffee production and enables a complete assessment of a cup of coffee’s environmental impact. Moreover, it provides insight into appropriate changes and interventions.
In October 2021, Volcafe eventually unveiled its new sustainability strategy with three pillars as its foundation: sustainable profitability, regenerative practices, and responsible citizenship. The Volcafe Way support programme was a result of a two-year research and development initiative to sustainably source coffee and is now promoting the three-pillared framework’s ideals to thousands of coffee farmers all over Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
Volcafe has been a coffee trader since 1851 and is operating in the world’s major coffee-producing and importing markets. It specialises in procuring green coffee, processing it in origin countries, and distributing the product to roaster partners.
dss+ is an operations management consulting firm dedicated to saving lives and ensuring a sustainable future. Formerly known as DuPont Sustainable Solutions, the company has been helping businesses develop their operational performance and meet their sustainability goals for over 50 years across more than 30 countries.
