Atria's chicken products, which have a carbon footprint labelling on their packaging, have been awarded in a innovation competition organized by the European Cooperative Society Cogeca. The prize for significant innovation was awarded in the “Traceability and Consumer Information” series. The award was presented in Brussels on 27 April. The focus of the competition in 2022 was on cooperative innovations that promote sustainability.
At the end of 2021, Atria was the first food company in the world to introduce a carbon footprint label for its chicken products on consumer packaging. The traceability of the meat raw material to the farm has made it possible to mark the carbon footprint on a single product package. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the introduction of a farm origin label on the chicken meat package - the first in the world.
The award was given to Atria and its largest owner cooperatives, Itikka Cooperative and Lihakunta.
– Calculating the carbon footprint in our contract production farms (cattle, pigs, broilers) has shown that the Atria way of producing meat can withstand international scrutiny in climate matters. At the same time, the calculation has provided producers with concrete tools to reduce the climate impact of their farm and verified the effectiveness of the long-term work done earlier in the chain from a climate perspective. Atria's example as an industry developer not only secures the future of the Atria chain, it also creates consumer confidence that food production offers solutions to the climate issue, says Risto Lahti, Managing Director of Itikka Cooperative and Lihakunta.
For more information on the Cogeca European Cooperative Innovation Competition: