Food Sustainability Trends: Local Sourcing and Carbon Footprints for a Balanced Green Strategy

LONDON, ENGLAND, June 25, 2011 (Press-News.org) If you're looking for an example of the impact of sustainability in the food supply chain, look no further than retail giant Wal-Mart, who pledged last year to dramatically boost the locally grown produce it purchases from small and medium-sized farmers in the U.S. and abroad. Their goal includes tripling local sourcing globally and doubling the local produce purchased in the U.S.

Consumer-driven corporate virtue

While Wal-Mart's initiative is partly an effort to improve its corporate image by reducing its environmental impact, it is also in response to rising consumer interest in local food production. This trend is manifested in developments such as the proliferation of farmers' markets and the spread of the 'locavore' movement (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Locavores), calling for the consumption of locally grown foods. Even restaurateurs are taking note, with chefs polled by the National Restaurant Association naming locally sourced meats, seafood and produce as one of the hot trends on menus in 2011. Demand for local food production is being driven by factors including a lower carbon footprint (http://www.foodsafety.sgs.com/carbon-footprint.htm) related to a shorter driving distance to market, the economic advantages of local food production for individual communities, and the environmental benefits of maintaining and protecting the biodiversity of local farmland.

A complex balance

While one of the main arguments for local sourcing involves food miles, lower mileage is not the only consideration in calculating carbon savings. Take the example of mineral water production from a local natural spring, where glass bottles are used and returned to the plant by the customer. Based on an SGS study, the combination of local delivery and bottle reuse achieves the largest reduction in carbon footprint. Although the main beneficial carbon impact comes from collecting and reusing the bottles - not from eliminating long-distance transportation - the rate of reuse will be higher where the customer is closer to the production site, so the two indicators are linked.

Another example of the complexity of the issue involves local versus organic fruit. Locally produced fruit is generally considered preferable to organic varieties that have been transported halfway around the world, but local sourcing is only more sustainable if it is produced in season without the carbon footprint of off-season fruit storage or greenhouse production.

How can SGS help?

SGS's sustainability experts (http://www.foodsafety.sgs.com/sustainability.htm) can provide assistance to organizations at all stages in the food supply chain, including assessing the most significant impacts by analyzing the product life cycle and/or supply chain impacts. Carbon footprint analysis can be a good starting point to increasing the long-term sustainability of a business, ensuring competitive advantage, protecting your brand, and preparing for a rise in sustainable product and raw materials initiatives, standards and even regulations. SGS experts can also help define a local procurement strategy (http://www.foodsafety.sgs.com/green-procurement.htm) and develop training and awareness programs for buyers and suppliers.

You can learn more about how SGS can help you reduce your carbon footprint and adopt green procurement strategies by contacting our ecodesign team:

Contact details:

SGS Consumer Testing Services
Bethany Murray
Sustainability Consultant - Global Sustainability Services
Saunders House, 52-53 The Mall, Ealing, W5 3TA London, United Kingdom

t: +44 203 008 7876
f: +44 20 3008 7870

E-Mail: cts.media@sgs.com
Website: http://www.sgs.com/foodsafety

SGS is the world's leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. SGS is recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With 64,000 employees, SGS operates a network of over 1,250 offices and laboratories around the world.

SGS Consumer Testing Services ensures the quality and safety of every kind of consumer products, from textiles, electronics and furniture to food and automotive. Our customers in these distinct manufacturing industries rely on our inspection and testing capabilities and laboratories to help them comply with the regulatory requirements governing their products, as well as to ensure the integrity of the inputs received from their suppliers.
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