FLAVOURS & FRAGRANCES
Mass balance & sustainable development in the flavour and fragrance industry
Maud Joassard , EMEA marketing manager for flavours and fragrances at Solvay shows how sustainability can be better documented in the F & F industry
Consumers want to protect the environment and are increasingly looking for products with lower-carbon impact , containing natural or bio-based ingredients . They are also increasingly aware that the manufacture , distribution , sale and disposal of the products they buy come at a high price in terms of carbon emissions .
This demand for lower-carbon lifestyles , together with international policies and programmes to mitigate climate change , is in turn putting pressure on businesses to understand their supply chain emissions and verify the carbon footprint of their products . Sustainability has become an imperative for all industries .
The flavours and fragrances ( F & F ) industry is a key stakeholder in this transformation , as underlined by the important commitments taken by some of its key players , together with FMCG companies . So , in order for companies to move ahead and treat climate change as more than just a corporate social issue , it is essential to start monitoring greenhouse gas ( GHG ) emissions along the entire value chain .
GHG emissions reporting
A joint initiative of the World Resources Institute and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development , the GHG Protocol ( GHGP , Figure 1 ) was established to develop and promote the use of best practices for accounting and reporting GHG emissions . It requires that businesses classify their carbon footprint in three scopes :
• Scope 1 : All direct emissions released into the atmosphere from company-owned and -controlled resources ( industrial processes , on-site manufacturing fuels and heating sources ), plus all mobile combustion from vehicles owned by the company and fugitive emissions , such as leaks from refrigeration and air conditioning
• Scope 2 : All indirect emissions from the generation of purchased energy from a utility provider , such as electricity , heat , steam and cooling , plus the electricity consumed by the end-user
• Scope 3 : All indirect emissions not covered in Scope 2 that occur along the entire value chain of the company
Those F & F suppliers who follow this approach , monitor their emissions
Figure 1 - GHG protocol
and create improvement roadmaps with clear targets , are taking the lead in effective sustainable development . They are also providing their customers with a sustainable competitive advantage to correctly respond to end-consumers ’ growing requirements .
Solvay is a major supplier to the F & F industry . Our long-standing expertise encompasses wellestablished products , such as vanillin and natural vanillin , obtained by a biotechnological process from ferulic acid . Sustainability is an integral element of our strategy and we continually monitor our progress towards a sustainable future that provides shared value for all .
Mass balance
To fully develop the circular economy potential of the chemical and other industrial sectors , a new approach is needed . Today , even when a
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