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CSR
Semi-annual CO₂ report April 2026
Heerenveen
In the time since our previous CO2 performance report a couple of things have changed. In one of our production facilities, located in Heerenveen, the amount of electricity used in the production process have been characterized per sub process. These known, measured amounts account for more than 95% of the total electricity consumed. This creates insight into our typical use of electricity throughout the day. However, there is still a limitation here, where we do not fully understand how the energy consumption is linked to every individual appliance or electric motor. On top of this, several correlations between energy use and the stages of each process became clear from the measurements. Most of these correlations make sense, although the exact numbers related are now more well-understood.
The previously mentioned correlations are still lacking in terms of individual appliances, therefore that is the next challenge. In principle this will be done after a device has been replaced. Since quantifying the consumption of every appliance in a factory would take an enormous amount of time, the focus is put on measuring a device just before and right after it is replaced. This way the benefit of a new (or refurbished) machine is immediately expressed, showing efficiency gains. Measuring these efficiency gains are vital for reporting on our emission reductions.
While the measurements were going on, there have also been several changes that saved energy:
- Several electrical motors have been replaced with a more efficient IE4 motor. This has saved up to 5% of the energy use of the respective motors.
- A number of fans have been turned off that were deemed unnecessary.
- The power control on the solar panels present on the roof has been changed, resulting in efficiency gains of up to 60% at the sunniest times, resulting in 10% extra electricity produced.
- The roof has had its top layer replaced, which helps insulate the whole facility. The extra solar panels reflect a lot of the sunlight. The skylights on the conditioned storage have been closed off, reducing natural light, luckily, it’s in areas where robots predominantly work. All this combined helps keep the heat out and therefore reduce our cooling demand.
- The pressure of the steam boiler has been reduced from 5,4 to 5 bar.
Katwoude
In Katwoude there have been developments as well, mainly in terms of energy efficiency. A steam line has been closed off, preventing further losses form the redundant pipe. The new CIP unit has been installed and is fully operational. It is now one of the projects to determine how much energy the new system, mainly the pumps, truly save in terms of energy. In the office building the last few rooms have been outfitted with an automatic light switch, making it impossible to forget to turn the light off. In the near future there are talks of heat recovery being applied to a new set of air compressors. In other news a new storage and distribution centre will be built, hopefully within this year, where a green fields approach can be taken to energy efficiency.
Dairy farm
In another area where a future-proof position has been taken is on the dairy farm. Here, a wholly different way of farming has been adopted. The groundwater level has been artificially raised. This reduces oxidation in the peat soil and therefore reduces the amount of CO2 released. It also helps against the settling of the soil, preventing the overall height of the soil lowering any further. On the flip side since there is more water present in the top layers of the soil, more nutrients are flushed out. The loss of these nutrients lowers overall yields. However, this just makes it a more sustainable and eco-friendly way of farming on peat.
