Climate change affects everyone. To contribute to the UN’s goal to limit global warming, ICA Gruppen have long worked in line with science based climate targets, and between 2006 and 2020, greenhouse gas emissions from the Group’s own operations (stores, pharmacies, warehouses and offices) were reduced by 76%. Since 2020, all emissions are offset through carbon credits, making the Group’s operations climate neutral. By 2030, ICA Gruppen are to have net zero climate impact from the Group’s own operations. That will imply continued emissions reductions in line with the Paris agreement, to as close to zero as possible, and at the same time gradually moving from offsetting through carbon credits to measures that balance positive emissions with negative emissions.

An important part of the emissions in ICA Gruppen’s value chain come from the production stage. By 2025, ICA Gruppen’s suppliers accounting for 70% the Group’s upstream climate impact are to have adopted science-based climate targets. At the end of 2020, the outcome was 26%.
 

Outcome 2020
ICA Gruppen reached its climate neutrality target in 2020. Since the base year of 2006 emissions of greenhouse gases have decreased by 76%, mainly due to major efforts and improvements in the areas of energy, refrigerants, logistics flows and goods transport. Altogether, emissions have decreased from an average of 111 kg CO2e per square metre to 26 kg CO2e per square metre. All 2020 emissions are offset through climate compensation. The outcome for the supplier target at the end of 2020 was 26%.

Food accounts for about a quarter of humanity’s total impact on the climate and it is therefore of utmost importance to take care of and properly handle the food that is produced. Accordingly, in 2019 ICA Gruppen decided to adopt a new Group target: to cut food waste from warehouses and stores in both Sweden and the Baltic countries in half by 2025 compared with the base year 2016. Food waste is measured using an international standard created by the FLW Protocol (Food Loss and Waste Protocol). Important activities to reach the new target include smarter algorithms for sourcing, producing circular products and having procedures and tools for early identification of food that is at risk of being wasted.

Outcome 2020
ICA Gruppen’s food waste has by the end of 2020 been reduced with 14% compared with the base year 2006. A continued focus on purchasing processes, and on registering, following up and analysing the cause of waste has led to an increased pace in reducing food waste. Especially the stores in Sweden have improved their work with systematically measuring and following up on their food waste, which also improves the reliability of data.

A significant share of global climate impact comes from the production and consumption of food. Therefore, ICA does not only set targets to reduce the Group’s own emissions, but also requires suppliers to adopt science based climate targets. ICA Gruppen also wants to cut the climate impact of customers’ grocery purchases in half by 2030.

ICA:s customers in Sweden can already follow their climate footprint from food through the service ”Mitt klimatmål” (My climate target), which also provides personalised tips for reducing climate impact, as well as links to climate guided recipes. ICA also works towards this target by inspiring and supporting customers with shifts in the product assortment, and improving production methods for lower environmental and climate impact, for example within the ICA Växa initiative.

The ambition to cut the climate impact from customers’ grocery purhcases in half was decided upon in 2020, and from 2021 ICA Gruppen will start reporting against the target.

All Swedish operations within ICA Gruppen have adopted a new health strategy, based on the ambition of making it easier for our customers to live a healthy life, in line with their situation and circumstances. The strategy focusses especially on children and young people.

One target, which can already be noticed in stores, is that we want our customers’ purchases of fruit and vegetables to increase significantly to a level corresponding to 500 grams per person and day by 2025. This change could make a big difference, as the average today is less than 400 grams, and for children and young people only half that.

The target for increased consumption of fruits and vegetables was adopted in 2020, and ICA Gruppen will report against it from 2021.