Monday, 26 August 2024.
Today we will comment on two very interesting topics: the carbon footprint of milk and soy credits.
This is, in fact, a continuation of the article published on August 23rd, when we announced the Sustainable Farm Program of the Frísia Cooperativa Agroindustrial (Frísia) presented at an event in the city of Ponta Grossa, Paraná, Brazil.
At the same event, Jean Andrusko from Frísia also commented on the carbon footprint of milk and soy credits.
And kindly shared with us the slides presented, which you can download below.
The carbon footprint of milk was measured using to the Cool Farm Alliance's Cool Farm Tool (CFT). According to Jean, Frísia entered the competition well, with some producers already reaching 0.8 kg CO2 per liter of milk produced.
On this subject of milk's carbon footprint and methodological references, see these two studies:
- “Carbon footprint assessment for a local branded pure milk product: a lifecycle based approach” (2018)
Regarding soy credits, the subject appears on slide 22 of the presentation. And in the press release “Cooperado da Frísia comercializa créditos de soja sustentável”, from which we quote:
“Each ton of certified soy is equivalent to one credit. Jean Cesar Andrusko, an environmental specialist from Frísia, explains that the credits are made available on an online platform, which is open to various companies around the world. Whoever buys can attest that they purchased certified soy, that is, sustainable.”
“Located in the municipality of Teixeira Soares, in Campos Gerais do Paraná, Pau Furado made history by offering 2,281 credits. A company located in Denmark purchased an amount, with each credit being sold for US$2.50, and another company, from Germany, purchased the remainder for US$2.80 each”.
Surprised by soy credits? Be aware that there are also corn credits.
More details here, portal in English, Portuguese and Spanish of RTRS – Round Table on Responsible Soy Association.
Here are some other protocols considered by the cooperative:
Finally, here is a link to Frísia's 2023 Annual Sustainability Report (in Portuguese), featuring several indicators from the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), as well as a brief discussion on materiality. And specific topics on “Atmospheric emissions inventory” (GRI 305-1 | 305-2) and “Carbon diagnosis on milk producing properties”.
These actions by Frísia in the agricultural sector are very interesting, as well as those we reported a few days ago in the industrial sector.
They set the tone for how clients and consumers are evolving in some international markets.
