C02 calculation available in Millum
Hotels, restaurants, and staff restaurant chains all need to be able to track their carbon footprint. Millum has its own module for CO2 calculation in the procurement solution. This calculates the climate footprint of a menu and per portion.
Demand for a CO2 calculator from the food service industry
In recent years, Millum has experienced a growing demand from our customers to document the 'footprint' of the menus and dishes they create. Therefore, we developed a CO2 calculator that provides chefs with an overview of the climate footprint of the food they serve.
This is accessible via Menu Bank, a module in the Millum Procurement. It is a requested feature that we have developed. We find that documentation of the CO2 footprint is something that is important for both existing and potential customers. When the industry has such a clear need for such a tool, it is important that we respond quickly. CEO, MillumBjørn Anskau
How to calculate the climate footprint of food?
All values in the calculator are given in a unit set by UNCFF and the EU Commission. This unit converts the effects of different gases to the equivalent amount of CO2 required to create the same greenhouse effect. By converting the data to a common unit, one can, for example, compare the climate footprint of a vegetarian burger with a beef burger.
Millum collaborates with both Klimato and RISE (Research Institutes of Sweden), Sweden's research institute and innovation partner, to obtain climate data for the CO2 calculator. This provides customers with a wider range of source types to choose from.
Klimato has its own climate labels, while RISE uses a level scale with levels of green, yellow, orange, and red, represented as a leaf icon - from best to worst for the environment. We also use RISE's product database for calculation in both Norway and Sweden, providing a larger selection of pre-calculated products than before.
We hope that the color-coded system will be a good solution for users. For us, it's about being able to convey the climate footprint of each dish in a simple way. This way, we can clarify what 'greener' choices in the dish can represent.Bjørn Anskau
This means that if a chef replaces meat with a vegetarian protein source in a recipe, either entirely or partially, they can immediately see the effect by observing the color change of the leaf icon. The same applies if they reduce the quantity of a given ingredient.
Full control over functionality
Since we have developed the calculator in-house, we have full control over the current functionality and what can be developed in the next phases. Primarily, the calculator addresses the lifecycle from the production of goods to the finished dish.
I am proud that we have developed the calculation solution with our own development resources. It gives us much greater freedom and control over the module. Thanks to good partners, we can be sure that the data has high precision.Bjørn Anskau
