Airfreight, poverty and the planet

Cast your mind back

The Headlines… Local food greener than organic – March 2005 Food miles dont go the distance – Mar 2006 Food miles can mislead – Nov 2007

The facts

Food production accounts for 18% of UK emissions Source; Food Climate Research Network, work in progress 2007

Business context

Airfreight in M&S Small number of products Fruit, vegetables and flowers Choice and quality not available in UK or countries nearby Sourcing location decisions driven by availability and quality of produce Small amount of contingency sourcing

Availability 1 Climate research at the Met Office Hadley Centre

Climate Change HealthFair Deal SustainabilityWaste Plan A

Our carbon footprint

In Food, we identified 9 key carbon drivers Input / Output Ratio Transport Domestic Cooking Packaging Primary Protein Processing Primary Produce Primary Grain Type of Storage

Overall Food heatmap 3.3m tonnes of CO2e per year

Airfreight in context Processing also makes a significant contribution Protein is the largest area Transport and retail operations have smaller impact

Within that airfreight has highest impact Airfreight is the most carbon intensive form of transport Emitted at atmosphere so higher impact Less than 1% of all food carried by air but accounts for 11% of food transport emissions Short haul flight3.79 Short Haul ship Short Haul truck0.02 Long haul flight5.53 Long haul ship Long haul truck0.15 CO2e KGs emissions per KG of freighted product* *M&S food carbon footprint – LEK, Carbon Trust

What options are open to us… Behaviour options Stop providing out of season food Reducing quality, availability of products after weather events Technology options Shift to alternate modes of transport Extend British sourcing season Source from other developing economies

Airfreight is also growing Airfreight grew 140% between 1992 and Food is fastest growing air freighted commodity As we fly, more it becomes cheaper to fly..a viscous circle 1. Soil Association Air freight consultation Are we building a carbon intense supply chain for the future? What impact will climatic changes have on food sourcing? What impact will increasing fuel prices have ?

High value agriculture is important for developing economies 83% air freighted organic from countries with average income less than £150 a month 40% from countries such as Kenya and Ghana - average income < £40 a month Average carbon footprint is 0.2 tonnes/person in Kenya

Other issues such as water are increasingly important Check food cabinet office report Source: Cabinet Office Strategy Unit review, Jan 2008

The decisions could be made for us… Source: Cabinet Office. Realising Britains Potential

Commitments on air freight 20. Reducing air freight – investigating and minimising our use of air freight whilst balancing the need to trade with developing countries and provide nutritional choice 24. Labelling air freighted food

What are we doing

Working with suppliers – we need to do more Understanding extent of airfreight Providing maximum value back to community Better planning for future

Extending British Season

Innovation

Summary Not easy decisions due to uncertainty, lack of data and managing trade offs Need to work harder on how we communicate such trade offs with consumers Business needs to move forward even when things are murky Need to take into account impacts of different issues (not just now but in the future) Approach may have to change over time

What might good air freight look like? Transparency Ethical labour UK paying full environmental cost Development of growers – investing in agriculture Helping countries at risk adapt Gold standard airfreight – high value add, environmental and social benefits to local economy UK paying full environmental costManaging reductions in sensitive manner