Headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario, Maple Leaf Foods, Inc announced today it plans to reduce its environmental footprint and become carbon neutral.
Chief executive Michael McCain says the company is staking its future on being carbon neutral. In a press release, the company said this is a massive step forward on its path to sustainability as it becomes the first major food company in the world to be carbon neutral.
The Company joins two other animal protein companies in the world to set Science Based Targets, approved by the international Science Based Target Initiative in – alignment with the goals of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
“There is simply no more time to waste. The devastating impact of climate change on our planet must be confronted head-on by business leaders with decisive and immediate action,” said McCain.
Maple Leaf has already made significant progress toward its goal of reducing its environmental footprint by 50 percent by 2025. Since 2015, the Company has reduced over 86 million-kilowatt hours of electricity – equal to 12,912 passenger vehicles driven for one year — and over 4.3 million cubic meters of natural gas, which equals the annual energy usage for 1,000 homes.
As part of its sustainability efforts, the company is also investing in independently verified, high-impact environmental projects, that include wind energy, recovering methane gas from landfills, composting and biomass programs to reduce methane emissions, and forest protection and re-forestry to conserve species and biodiversity across Canada and the United States.
“Today’s actions are not just about being socially responsible; they are about survival,” said McCain. “Consumers rightfully expect business and political leaders to solve these problems and address the profound consequences of our climate crisis.”
Maple Leaf Foods is a producer of food products under leading brands including Maple Leaf, Maple Leaf Prime, Maple Leaf Natural Selections, Schneiders, Schneiders Country Naturals, Mina, Greenfield Natural Meat Co., Lightlife, Field Roast Grain Meat Co.TM, and Swift. Maple Leaf employs approximately 12,500 people and does business in Canada, the U.S., and Asia.
