Foundation Earth is an independent, non-profit organisation issuing front-of-pack environmental scores on food products, helping businesses build a more resilient and environmentally sustainable food system while giving consumers the tools they need to make sustainable buying choices. They bring together scientists and leading figures from food production and retailing who all share a vision of a food industry that doesn’t destroy the planet.
Our food systems are complex. If we want to truly change the way we produce and consume food, we need to take a systemic approach and involve all actors from business to academia, policy makers and citizens. They are innovating to develop an optimum methodology that measures the environmental impact of food products and provides an easy-to-understand front-of-pack score for consumers. They score products by carrying out Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) focusing on high-quality data (as opposed to more general averages), that not only allow their eco impact scores to be as accurate as possible, but also helps brands identify where improvements can be made in their supply chain.
The Foundation Earth front-of-pack label is designed to give consumers the information they need to choose more sustainable food products. Their scores range from A+ to G and are re-certified yearly, making it possible for product owners to improve their production and grade over time. They know that to provide the best scoring system means growing with the science and consistently integrating new learnings. That’s why they are engaged in Research & Development activities that draw the best elements of different methodologies to produce a scientifically robust and widely accepted method that accounts for the true environmental impact of food production.
France on Board
Foundation Earth has appointed the French Government’s ecolabelling project coordinator to its scientific committee, in a major milestone towards the harmonisation of environmental labelling of food and drink across Europe. The French Government’s lead expert Vincent Colomb joins a Dutch leading expert Dr Koen Boon and the top UK food scientist Professor Chris Elliott OBE on the committee, marking an increased level of collaboration between the most advanced European initiatives, to support the mission Foundation Earth has set on impactful, harmonised ecolabelling.
Alongside the new appointment to the Foundation Earth Scientific Committee, which already includes other experts in sustainability, ecolabelling and consumer behaviour, Foundation Earth is announcing intentions to initiate a R&D programme designed to close the remaining gaps between its own method and the method being led by the French Government.
It is inviting expressions of interest for potential partners and supporters for the R&D programme, which it is hoped will be the next substantial step towards agreeing a single, harmonised and optimum environmental labelling system for food and drink across the European continent. Vincent Colomb from ADEME, the French Agency for Ecological Transition is an accomplished environmental expert and has been leading the French Government’s efforts in the world of ecolabelling.
With a wealth of experience in life cycle assessments and eco-design – particularly for the agricultural and food sectors – Vincent Colomb has been a driving force behind the development of the French LCI AGRIBALYSE food database, and has also contributed to the establishment of the Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) framework at European level.
Since mid-2022, Vincent has taken on the responsibility of coordinating ADEME’s efforts to develop ecolabelling initiatives for all types of products and services, in compliance with the French Climate law enacted in 2021. His key objective for 2023-24 is to bring to fruition an extensive ecolabelling scheme for the food and textiles sectors in France.
“Broader and more reliable environmental information is expected by many compagnies and consumers worldwide. We are in an exciting time of experiments and testing, with access to more and more powerful assessment tools and data access. ADEME shares Foundation Earth’s science-driven vision and transparency principles. I am very glad to join this initiative and to share experience with European and international partners, joining efforts to speed up the shift towards a more sustainable food system,” said Vincent Colomb, Ecolabelling Project Coordinator at ADEME.
Royal DSM and Foundation Earth
Royal DSM and Foundation Earth, an independent, non-profit organization issuing front-of-pack Eco Impact scores on food products, have inked an agreement to cooperate on eco-labeling of food and beverages, particularly animal protein products such as eggs, milk, fish and meat. The move is being marketed to empower consumers to make more sustainable food choices based on transparent and credible information.
Under terms of the partnership, DSM will undertake full Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) for participating brands under the Foundation Earth method, enabling companies to access an aggregated Eco Impact score on their food and drink products and an eco-label that can be displayed on the front-of-pack.
Heinz Flatnitzer, senior director of emission value management at DSM Animal Nutrition and Health, says eco-labelling is “an emerging area of growing interest that different players and a variety of approaches can characterize.” Based on historical evidence, DSM sees that clear, credible eco-labelling can influence consumers to make more sustainable choices. “Overall, the goal is to get clear and easy-to-understand information to consumers so that they can make informed choices about the environmental impacts of products they consume,” he outlines.
Flatnitzer attests that companies “need to take leadership and responsibility to contribute to decreasing the environmental footprint.” He underscores that more is needed to wait for regulations and frameworks with uncertain timeframes, given the situation’s urgency. “I hope more companies get involved because creating a food system that respects our planetary boundaries requires everyone to do their part. There may be a first-mover advantage in sustainable protein production, meaning that those who figure this out sooner could stand to gain the most.”
Tackling Misleading Marketing
In today’s pursuit of a sustainable future for our planet, demand for environmental transparency is ever growing. With consumers paying more and more attention to their environmental impact, businesses are acknowledging the importance this plays in gaining trust and building a positive reputation. As a result, we are seeing companies increasingly integrate sustainability challenges into both their decision-making and communications: “going green” is no longer a bonus – it needs to be at the heart of the way we innovate, produce and consume.
But awareness is just the first step – how is this being turned into action? It’s no secret that the sustainability challenge is a difficult one the requires systems change. And while there may be some simpler switches that businesses can make and communicate about – like moving to renewable energies or changing packaging – achieving true sustainability requires a complete review of the way a business operates. Establishing targets and standards can provide a clear framework for all to follow, ensuring that companies are truly achieving sustainability, and not just engaging in greenwashing.
Food ecolabelling, for example, has been around for years, with experts across science, business and civil society striving to develop an optimum and fair way to assess the environmental impact of food. But as we know, there are multiple pathways to tackle a same challenge, and this has led to a proliferation of methods and tools to substantiate sustainability initiatives. At the end of the day, this leaves consumers confused: people are unsure about how accurate the claims are, which source to trust, and ultimately how to have a clear and transparent view over their impact. This opens a huge door for interpretation, benefitting business growth over real impact. Enter the role of standardisation and harmonisation.
The European Commission’s proposal for a Directive on Green Claims, released in March 2022, brings us one step closer to increased transparency and accountability from the food industry, pushing for a set of rules and guidelines to be established that businesses can follow when making environmental claims about their products or services. This, in turn, will:
- Ensure companies cannot make unsubstantiated green claims
- Prevent greenwashing
- Encourage companies to improve their environmental performance and adopt sustainable practices
When it comes to food ecolabelling, it means a step in the right direction to ensure a science-led, robust and common assessment and grading mechanisms that will allow us to compare products across the continent and establish greater credibility.
Whereas there are still many details to clarify in the Proposal – such as a clear implementation calendar, what penalties will be in place for those who do not respect the directive, and who will implement them – Foundation Earth welcomes this first step towards making industry more accountable for their environmental impacts.
Meatless Farm Introducing Eco-labels
Leading plant-based brand, Meatless Farm, has announced the introduction of eco-labelling to its core product. Delivered and certified by Foundation Earth, the traffic-light labelling system will help the brand communicate the eco impact of its products to customers looking to cut back on their environmental footprint. The introduction of eco-labelling from the brand is part of its ongoing mission to drive greater awareness about how people’s food choices impact the environment.
This comes as the brand hopes to encourage shoppers to make more considered food choices, as research shows, swapping one more red meat meal to plant-based each week would cut the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions by 8.4% – the equivalent of taking 16 million cars off the road.
“At Meatless Farm we are constantly looking for new ways to encourage consumers to make more sustainable choices to help improve the health of the planet,” Meatless Farm CEO and founder Morten Toft-Bech said. “As we look to the future, the introduction of eco-labelling is one way we plan to do this. Informing shoppers about the impact their choices have on the environment will encourage them to think more about their carbon footprint and choose products with lower carbon emissions.”
Foundation Earth CEO Cliona Howie added: “We are excited to welcome Meatless Farm as one of our pioneer brands using eco-labelling as a tool for eco impact transparency. It’s important that people have robust and credible information to help inform their purchases as they look to make more sustainable shopping choices, and eco-labelling is a clear and obvious way to do this.”
Evaluating each products carbon emissions, water usage, water pollution and impact on biodiversity, the Foundation Earth eco-label and score will appear on the front of Meatless Farm’s plant-based Mince, Meatless Farm plant-based Chicken Breasts, Meatless Farm’s Chipolatas, Meatless Farm plant-based Quarter Pound Burgers and Meatless Farm plant-based Steaks from January 2023.
As many players race towards developing an optimal solution for food ecolabelling, many debates have surfaced around what metrics and standards should be used to best reflect the complexity of the issue. But a lot of knowledge has already been produced, and there is very little point in re-inventing the wheel. In line with Foundation Earth’s mission to harmonise the way to assess and communicate the environmental impact of food and drink products, the EU Green Claims Directive sets a clear precedent to avoid further proliferation.