Berner has joined the international Science Based Targets climate initiative (SBTi). In the initiative, companies set and approve greenhouse gas emission reduction targets, which must be in line with the Paris Agreement.
“We are committed to reducing our climate and environmental impacts in our Shared Responsibilities programme. We are now taking a science-based step in further developing our environmental responsibility by committing to the SBTi climate initiative,” says Juha Starck, Berner’s Head of Supply Chain.
We will set science-based emission reduction targets for our own operations (Scope 1 and 2) and for our value chain (Scope 3) so that they comply with the 1.5°C limit established by the Paris Agreement. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the global temperature increase can still be limited to 1.5°C by the end of the century compared to the pre-industrial era, but this requires rapid and robust action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Reduced emissions from energy use and logistics
“We have reduced the greenhouse gas emissions of our operations, especially through renewable energy and in the value chain, by switching to Neste MY Renewable Diesel™ in transportation related to our own production,” says Heini Koivistoinen, Berner’s Quality and Environment Manager.
Our own products are produced with 99.9–100% renewable energy at our Heinävesi production plants. Our annual CO2 emissions from electricity use decreased by 661.3 tonnes (CO2 eq.) in 2019 as we switched to green wind power at the end of 2018 in all our operations in Finland.
We have reduced Scope 3 emissions in the value chain by switching to Neste MY Renewable Diesel™ from 1 July 2021 for transport operated by Heinävesi’s production facilities and Viinikkala’s logistics centre DB Schenker. The calculated greenhouse gas emissions will be reduced by an estimated 170 tonnes per year, corresponding to a reduction of approximately 90% of the total emissions on the route in question.
Berner’s SBTi commitment applies to companies that own 100% of Berner in Finland, Sweden and the Baltics. A large part of our total emissions consist of Scope 3 emissions from the value chain, such as raw materials and logistics. “We will continue our current status review work on these to be able to set and get approval for our reduction targets within two years,” Heini Koivistoinen continues.
About the Science Based Targets climate initiative
The Science Based Targets climate initiative includes the global climate action disclosure non-profit CDP, the UN Global Compact initiative (UNGC), the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
The targets set by companies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions are considered science-based if they are in line with the measures that current climate science indicates must be taken to achieve the objectives of the Paris Agreement on climate change – that is, to limit global warming to well below 2°C compared to pre-industrial levels and to try to limit global warming to 1.5°C. For more information, please visit www.sciencebasedtargets.org
Berner’s responsibility commitments and memberships
Berner has previously committed to the UN Global Compact corporate responsibility initiative and the chemical industry’s international Responsible Care programme. For 3 years, we have been reporting emissions from our operations to CDP. Berner is also a member of Amfori BSCI, and we have just joined Amfori BEP, which aims to ensure and develop environmental responsibility in global supply chains.
Further information:
Maria Nymander, Communications and Sustainability Manager, Berner Ltd
Tel. 044 3352579
maria.nymander@berner.fi