Carbon footprint of the city of Helsinki catering services -Case Palmia

Culinary culture strategy of city Strategy programme : “Helsinki will be developed as a centre for Finnish food and top gourmet by promoting business through cooperation between companies, the educational institutions in the city, Palmia and the Wholesale Market” -> Culinary culture strategy Environmental actions on culinary culture strategy: –Creating an evaluation of the environmental and climate impacts of the City of Helsinki food chain and a climate counter for food services. Together, these form the factual basis for implementing the city’s climate policy for food services (City of Helsinki Environment Centre). –Gradually increasing the use of organic and local food for the city’s own food services. The organic meal programme for children will be launched in the initial phase –Promoting local and organic food markets by improving their marketplaces, such as the Wholesale Market, other markets and food halls –Promoting management of environmental issues for restaurants, food services and hotels with the Eco Compass system

Carbon footprint of catering services Aim of the project: to find out carbon footprint of Helsinki’s catering-services food chain 1st phase: Carbon footprint of Palmia Catering public utility owned by the city (corporatized partly in 2015) About meals daily to schools, day-care centres, hospitals, elderly homes, public lunch restaurants, events A consult doing the calculation (Natural Interest)

Food a major source of emissions

Boundaries of emission accounting Sources of information are identifieable Gathering of information can be repeated without large resource demands Information is in a form which enables carbon footprinting Major part of the emissions are included in calculation

Process of accounting SuppliersPurchasing statisticsConsumption of food kg/aEmission factors kg CO2e./kgCarbon footprint

tCO 2 e per annum Consumption data scaled in energy consumption and logistics Accounting includes –Energy consumption of cooking and storage –Palmia’s internal transportation –Procurement of food About 1,1 kg CO2e/meal Food materials 58 % of emissions About 6 % of city organisation’s emissions or ½ of public transportation’s emissions 3 Lnternal logistics Energy of cooking and storage Food materials (primary production

Dairy products and meat dominate in food materials Consumption 3

Emission factor vary a lot 4

What next? Ongoing –campaign on environmental impact of food in personnel restaurants (oct. 2014) -> feedback –light study on procurement practises of forerunner cities on environmental criteria of food (Environmental policy 100% criteria by 2020) –energy audit of Palmia food factory –increased co-operation with Palmia and procurement administration Ideas: –Piloting a climate criteria (renewable energy etc.) in procurement in a product –Climate goal and follow-up of climate impact of catering-services –Education for personnel in kitchens for energy saving –A realism review and impact assesment of possible measures made by experts

Climate lunch campaign 2014 The idea of campaign was inform clients about climate impacts of food and their and Palmia’s opportunities to affect these impacts Climate lunch was served at one day in all 48 Palmia’s restaurants in energy saving week Three day exhibition in one of the restaurant

Climate lunch Menu was planned to be climate friendly - focus on vegetables and fishes Carbon footprint of the menu was calculated and compared to non climate friendly lunch (infostands in tables and posters)

Feedback Clients took climate lunch in positive way People were in general interested about climate impacts of food and they were willing to talk and ask about the topic Positive feedback came also through feedback survey Plan is to repeat campaign every year

Thank You!