Tesco to carbon-label its retail products; will include distribution impact
Supermarket giant Tesco says the company will start providing public information about the carbon footprint of the products on its shelves. The company's boss, Sir Terry Leahy, says the move is part of the company's overall plan to reduce its carbon footprint. And he expects that when consumers are given the information, they will will make "greener choices." He already notes changes in consumer behavior as packaging give more nutritional information. While the goal is in place, Leahy says execution may not be as simple. A universally accepted and easily understood measure of carbon footprints needs to be found. Leahy says he's looking at the product's complete lifecycle, including production, distribution and consumption.
"It's a complicated task, but the goal is simple. I want us to come up with a clear system of labeling so that in future customers will be able to compare a product's carbon footprint just as easily as they can currently compare its price or nutritional value," said Leahy.
One concern is "fair miles" versus "air miles," noting many poor areas receive their food via airplanes. Simply scrapping all air miles would be unfair.
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[Source: FreshInfo.com]
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