DITTON PARK, United Kingdom — The world’s third-largest grocery retailer has tapped a New York-based firm to supply the software that will help it measure and manage its behemoth carbon footprint.
Tesco plc will use CA's ecoSoftware to streamline data management processes, reduce errors and expenses, and help the company communicate significant achievements.
Tesco’s efforts to make its operations more environmentally friendly are well known in the industry. Besides no longer sending any waste to landfills and adding carbon labels to products, the U.K.-based retailer set a goal two years ago of reducing the greenhouse gas emissions in its existing buildings by 2020, compared to a 2006 baseline. The company operates more than 4,000 locations in 14 countries.
"When we announced our plan two years ago to reduce our carbon footprint by 50 percent across all of our global operations, we knew we were taking on a big task," Mike Yorwerth, Tesco plc’s IT director, said in a statement Tuesday. "Since that time a number of people across the business have been involved in measuring, documenting and reporting on our emissions-a time-consuming, largely manual task. We're also overseeing hundreds of projects around the world designed to reduce our carbon footprint, all of which need to be prioritized and measured.”
The company, while not a heavy emitter covered by the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme, does fall within the scope of the U.K.'s Carbon Reduction Commitment, meant to trim emissions from less carbon-intensive organizations such as grocery stores, hospitals and universities. The program began this year with data collection; participants must submit their emissions data in 2010.
Beyond mandatory reporting requirements, the ecoSoftware can also help Tesco improve decision-making in its sustainability initiatives and assess the carbon footprint of its supply chain.
"Businesses today are doing more than just talking about energy, carbon and sustainability. From investigating ways to reduce energy costs and mitigating climate change risks facing the organization, to seizing emerging opportunities, organizations are taking action," Terrence Clark, senior vice president and general manager of ecoSoftware at CA, said in a statement.
Image courtesy of Tesco plc.