K Group is creating a carbon footprint calculator for grocery purchases

K Group is committed to creating solutions to combat climate change. According to studies carried out by K Group, customers need help in making more climate-friendly choices in the grocery store.

“We’ve received many requests for a tool that would measure the carbon footprint of grocery purchases. We want to help our customers make choices that are sustainable and aligned with their values. The K-Ostokset service already allows our customers to see how much of their purchases are products made in Finland and it also provides tips on choosing more Finnish products,” says Ari Akseli, President of K Group’s grocery trade division.

The carbon footprint calculator will be based on climate impact assessments by the Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke). It will estimate the carbon footprint for 40 of the most popular product groups sold in K Group’s grocery stores, including milk, bread, beef and root vegetables. The climate impact assessments are based on previous research and scientific materials such as the latest research literature and data banks.

“The calculator will not tell you the carbon footprint of each individual product, but it does provide information at product group level that will be useful for people who want to make more sustainable choices from a climate perspective. Many companies assess the climate impact of their products, but we do not yet have sufficient comparable and reliable product and brand-specific data on all products,” says Merja Saarinen, Senior Scientist at Luke.
 
K-Ostokset is a tool for tracking personal purchases and their impacts

The first version of the carbon footprint calculator will become available to customers in the K-Ostokset service before the end of this year. The calculator will be developed further and complemented as available data on e.g. the climate impact of Finnish products becomes more specific.

K-Ostokset is a data-based service that allows K-Plussa customers to track what they are buying from K Group’s grocery stores and helps them understand the impacts of their purchases. At the moment, the service shows customers how much Finnish products they are buying and suggests additional Finnish products to buy. 

K-Ostokset has been well-received and in a short time period has attracted tens of thousands of users. The service can be accessed via the K-Ruoka mobile app or at k-ruoka.fi/ostokset.

“We have received a lot of positive feedback from our customers, who appreciate the way K-Ostokset enables them to conveniently track their purchases and the impact of those purchases. Data on personal purchases can reveal a lot about your consumption habits and their impact on your personal wellbeing or the climate,” says Minna Vakkilainen, Head of Customer Data in K Group.

K Group has committed to goals of international climate summits and has set ambitious emission targets for its operations and supply chain. Through determined efforts over the years, K Group has taken significant steps towards reducing emissions. All electricity purchased by Kesko in Finland for K-stores and other properties is from renewable sources, and K Group is the biggest producer and user of solar power in Finland. We are actively reducing emissions by, for example, optimising logistics and energy use in stores. Kesko ranks as the most sustainable trading sector company in the world on the Global 100 list.

Further information (in Finnish): k-ruoka.fi/ostokset