LONDON, — Several leading companies have agreed to act as guinea pigs in a United Kingdom government-backed scheme to highlight the carbon footprint of their products.

Nine companies including household names uch as Cadbury Schweppes, Coca-Cola and the Co-op have become the second wave of firms to sign up to use a carbon footprinting standard designed by Defra and BSI.

The companies will use the standard to calculate the embodied carbon emissions of selected products.

They plan to use the information to then reduce the carbon emissions associated with the products and to work together with the Carbon Trust to explore the best way to communicate this information to consumers.

Boots, Walkers and fruit drinks company Innocent were the first companies to trial the draft standard and already display the carbon footprint of a number of their products on the packaging.

"The take up from business of the Carbon Trust's scheme shows that there's real appetite and willingness to firstly understand, and secondly to reduce the impact that their products have on our planet," said Climate Change Minister Joan Ruddock."It is encouraging that so many leading companies are stepping up to the plate on this. We are working with the Carbon Trust and others on a clear, standard way to measure the full carbon impacts of products.

"Not only are people becoming more and more aware of their own carbon footprint, and want to know how to reduce it, they also want to know what business is doing to reduce its own impacts. This initiative is part of that shared commitment to tackle climate change," he continued.

Tom Delay, chief executive of the Carbon Trust, said he was delighted to work with the new pilot partners to develop a carbon footprinting standard.

"UK businesses are increasingly looking to tackle the indirect emissions from products and services," Delay said. "This has been boosted by a rise in demand from consumers for more information on the climate change impact of products coupled with the desire from companies to become more energy and carbon efficient.

"The unprecedented level of interest we have had in this initiative makes me confident that by working with manufacturers and producers to reduce indirect carbon emissions, we can move the UK another step closer to a low carbon economy."

The companies and products involved in this second wave include: Aggregate Industries, hard landscaping products such as paving stones; Cadbury Schweppes, Cadbury Dairy Milk bars; Coca-Cola, a sparkling beverage and a still beverage; the Co-operative Group, 200g and 400g punnet Strawberries; Halifax, Halifax Web Saver Account; Kimberly-Clark, Andrex Toilet Tissue and Huggies nappies; Marshalls, hard landscaping products, such as paving stones; Muller Dairy, a yogurt product; Scottish & Newcastle, Fosters Lager and Bulmers Original Cider.