Zaandam, the Netherlands, March 7, 2024 - To reduce carbon emissions across the operations of Ahold Delhaize and our local brands, as well as across our value chain, we have established Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emission reduction targets in line with the 1.5ºC trajectory based on the methodology of the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
Why we choose to have science based emission reduction targets
The Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), helps companies determine a pathway for reducing their GHG emissions in line with the Paris Agreement’s climate action guidance for countries. The SBTi is founded by, amongst others, the United Nations Global Compact and WWF. It provides a targeting framework that has been adopted by leading companies around the globe and has been endorsed by several governments. At Ahold Delhaize we work with this independent framework because of its alignment with the Paris Agreement, and because it enables comparability with sector and non-sector peers as well as collaboration within the value chain.
For companies, there are 3 scopes that together encompass their total carbon footprint. Scope 1 and 2 involve the carbon emissions of a company’s own business. For Ahold Delhaize and its brands, these GHG emissions mainly entail our own energy consumption, leakages from the refrigeration systems in stores and distribution centers, as well as owned transport. Scope 3 entails the GHG emissions of our entire value chain, the so-called indirect GHG emissions. This involves amongst others the carbon footprint of (the production and transportation of) all products that are sold in our stores or on our online platforms.
Continuous process of adjusting to latest insights
Ahold Delhaize’s scope 3 GHG emissions footprint comprises a complex network of thousands of suppliers, producers and farmers who supply our brands with hundreds of thousands of different products, which in turn are sold to millions of customers each day. Mapping the carbon footprint and identifying how we can reduce the GHG emissions associated with all these products, requires conducting extensive research and gathering an immense amount of data.
Over the past years we have identified key reduction levers, and have been able to set short term (2030) and long term (2050) scope 1, 2 and 3 targets in line with the goal to limit global warming to 1.5ºC. However, the exact road to net-zero is not clear yet. We will keep refining our approach as more information – for example from suppliers, or detailed SBTi guidance on offsetting GHG emissions for those GHG emissions that cannot be abated – becomes available.
Moving towards an updated scope 3 target
When we established our latest targets for scope 1, 2 (in 2021) and 3 (in 2022), we submitted them to SBTi for validation. Our scope 1 and 2 targets have already been validated, and we are currently in the process of validation for our scope 3 target.
In the midst of our scope 3 validation process, SBTi added a requirement for companies to make a distinction between their forest, land, and agriculture (FLAG) and non-FLAG, or Energy and Industry (E&I) related GHG emissions. As a global business that relies on land-based activities, Ahold Delhaize is therefore required to set FLAG and non-FLAG near term and long term targets for scope 3, which we re-submitted to SBTi for validation at the end of 2023.
This means that going forward we will have scope 3 targets that are split up into these two categories. The submitted 1.5ºC-aligned targets pending SBTi validation are:
For the near term (2030):
- Reducing absolute scope 3 FLAG GHG emissions by 30.3% (or 4.7 MtCO2e) by 2030 from the 2020 baseline (for near-term target, 15.5 MtCO2e).
- Reducing absolute scope 3 E&I GHG emissions by 42.0% (or 12.4 MtCO2e) by 2030 from the 2020 baseline (for near-term target, 29.5 MtCO2).
For the long term (2050):
- Reducing absolute scope 3 FLAG GHG emissions by at least 72% (or 15.0 MtCO2e) by 2050 from the 2020 baseline (for long-term target, 20.8 MtCO2e).
- Reducing absolute scope 3 E&I GHG emissions by 90% (or 34.0 MtCO2e) by 2050 from the 2020 baseline (for long-term target, 37.8 MtCO2e).
- We commit to reach net-zero GHG emissions across our own operations and the value chain by 2050.
For setting our long-term and net-zero SBTi targets, we are making use of removals only to the extent permitted by the applicable SBTi guidance.
Our ambition in line with 1.5ºC
While the way we set – and report about – our climate targets will be continuously evolving as the world gains more and more insights into GHG emission reductions opportunities, our ambition is to reduce GHG emissions across our entire value chain in line with the 1.5ºC scenario. We will keep you updated on our progress, and share our learnings and challenges as we go forward.
To learn more about our plans to reduce GHG emissions across our entire value chain, please visit our Climate page or read our 2023 Annual Report.
