Reducing carbon emissions at client sites with Bunzl
Sodexo was one of the first organisations to have its 2040 net zero target validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). With 34% of the company’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions sitting within its supply chain, collaboration with supply partners is key to its net zero ambitions. Sodexo has now given its supply partners a deadline, and by 2030 will only partner with suppliers who can demonstrate tangible net zero progress.
To accelerate action, we’ve been reaching out to suppliers big and small to explore the opportunities and offer our support. By working closely at every level with one of our biggest suppliers, Bunzl Catering Supplies, we’ve identified new ways to decarbonise together.
Global provider and critical partner
Bunzl plc is an international distribution and services group. A FTSE 100 company with 19,000 suppliers around the world, it’s been working to reduce its environmental footprint for many years.
Justin Turquet is Director of Sustainability at Bunzl’s Catering & Hospitality Division, which delivers to almost all of Sodexo’s UK and Ireland client sites. Because transport activities are a significant factor in the UK's total carbon emissions, Bunzl has focused on making significant improvements in this area:
“Our Scope 1 and 2 emissions come primarily from our energy use and our delivery fleet. To reduce them, our UK warehouses now use 100% renewable energy and we’re also trialling the use of HVO, a fuel derived from oils and fats, as an alternative to traditional diesel."
Like Sodexo, Bunzl’s decarbonisation goals have been validated by the Science Based Targets initiative, so exploring what we can achieve together is an absolute must if we are to both fulfil our commitments.
Ambitious carbon efficiency plans
Bunzl plc set its emissions reduction targets in 2021, which were then validated by the SBTi in November 2022. Against a 2019 baseline, they are aiming to be:
- 25% more carbon efficient by 2025 and 50% by 2030 (Scope 1 and 2) with an absolute reduction in carbon emissions across Scopes 1, 2 and 3 of 27.5% by 2030
- Net zero by 2050 at the latest (Scopes 1, 2 and 3)
These targets are driving continued reductions throughout Bunzl’s Catering & Hospitality Division, which uses a carbon footprint tool to report publicly every quarter. In 2022, compared to the baseline, the division improved its Scope 1 carbon efficiency by 20%, Scope 2 by 8% and Scope 3 by 20%.
With both Bunzl and Sodexo committed to reporting openly on progress, the fight against climate change is core to how we do business. Emissions reduction is a key goal of our Joint Business Plan, the document that sets out our shared ambitions for delivery, and this has enabled and embedded daily conversations around net zero. In turn, it drives constant innovation around sustainability for Sodexo’s clients, along with robust data to support their own emissions reduction plans.
Collaborating on carbon reduction
The majority of Sodexo’s carbon emissions fall into Scope 3, which means they arise in our supply chain or at client sites. Our Head of Supplier Relationship Management, Simon Turner, explains how working strategically with Bunzl has made emissions reduction a natural part of the working day:
“Our work with Bunzl involves daily contact at multiple touchpoints and that creates huge opportunities for net zero innovation. Their first HVO-powered deliveries were made to a Sodexo site, bringing with them up to a 90% reduction in transport-related emissions. Bunzl’s team knows that we’re always open to new ideas, and that we’re willing to work through any challenges together.”
From catering disposables to chemicals and heavy equipment, both teams take a rigorous approach to assessing quality and sustainability in tandem. For example, the starting point for any new food packaging is that it’s fit for purpose, because an increase in food waste would create more greenhouse gas emissions than if the packaging was not changed; a holistic approach must be taken.
This approach reaches beyond a focus on particular products, and even how those products arrive – it extends to when they arrive too.
Making changes to operating practices
Operational efficiency is a key pillar of Bunzl's strategy, which supports its goal of improving its own carbon efficiency and that of its customers.
Bunzl consolidates all its customers' deliveries, maximising the amount of product that's delivered in each journey to achieve greater carbon efficiency. Bunzl has also invested in routing software to optimize the number of stops per journey and find the most efficient delivery routes. As a result, Bunzl Catering Supplies expect to reduce transport related emissions by 4%. However, this has required new ways of working. By investigating the storage capacity at Sodexo client sites, we’ve been able to work with Bunzl to accept less frequent deliveries. Justin believes that Sodexo’s active support has made it much easier to adopt sustainable practices:
“We asked Sodexo to change their own client service plans to help us reduce emissions, and they did. It shows a genuine commitment to working with us on net zero.”
Changing the conversation on climate
Like Sodexo, Bunzl is committed to the decarbonisation of its own supply chain by engaging each supplier and supporting them through the change. Bunzl is aiming for 79% of its suppliers (by emissions) to have set their own science-based targets by 2027. Justin explains:
“Companies big and small need to be taking action on climate change by calculating their carbon footprint and setting meaningful reduction targets. Collaboration will be vital, and that’s been the guiding force of our work with Sodexo. Their approach has always been ‘how can we work better together’, and it’s an approach we’ll be using with our own suppliers.”