Taiwanese strawberries also have carbon labels. The Miaoli District Agricultural Improvement Station of the Ministry of Agriculture implemented a carbon footprint inventory of fresh strawberries from Taiyi Leisure Farm. After a year of coaching, it passed the review of the Ministry of Environment and successfully obtained the "Product Carbon Footprint Label" (hereinafter referred to as the carbon label). This label records the carbon footprint emissions of strawberries from production to disposal. Miaoli Agricultural Reform Farm stated that in the future, it will provide guidance to industry players to carry out precise carbon reduction based on carbon emission hotspots. It also welcomes consumers to purchase products with carbon footprint labels to jointly promote the industry transformation of industry players to reduce carbon emissions.
The Ministry of Agriculture issued a press release on the 6th stating that the Miaoli Farm Reform Farm implemented a carbon inventory of the "400g plastic suitcase strawberries" produced by Taiyi Leisure Farm, becoming the first strawberry in Taiwan to have a carbon footprint label. Miaoli Agricultural Reform Center pointed out that since Taiwan promoted the carbon labeling system in 2009, a total of more than 500 products have obtained carbon labels, but most of them are concentrated in food and manufacturing, and there are relatively few agricultural products. Obtaining the strawberry carbon label will not only expand the agricultural products with carbon labels, but also promote green consumption.
Lu Xiuying, director of the Miaoli Farm Reform Farm, said that the carbon footprint of strawberries is based on the "Carbon Footprint Category Regulations (CFP-PCR) Fresh Fruits" announced by the Ministry of Environment, which records the carbon footprint emissions of strawberries from production to waste recycling.
The inventory results show that the total carbon footprint of the "400g plastic suitcase strawberries" produced by Taiyi Leisure Farm is 1.1kg carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e). The carbon footprint proportions at each stage are as follows:
*Acquisition of raw materials accounts for 68.81%
*Manufacturing accounts for 30.81%
*Used accounting for 0.33%
*Disposal accounts for 0.05%
Miaoli Agricultural Reform Farm pointed out that the raw material stage of strawberries accounts for the highest proportion of carbon footprint. At this stage, fertilizer, drip irrigation electricity, and seedlings rank among the top three "carbon emission hot spots". In order to achieve the goal of reducing its carbon footprint by 3% within five years, the farm will continue to assist Taiyi Leisure Farm in introducing a professional technical team to provide guidance on rational fertilization management, improve fertilizer use efficiency, and introduce an energy-saving irrigation system.
Miaoli Agricultural Farm participated in the Ministry of Agriculture's "Agricultural Products Carbon Footprint Inspection Project" this time. The Ministry of Agriculture stated that after conducting a carbon footprint inspection, Taiyi Leisure Farm learned about the carbon emission hotspots and will try to switch to containers made of recycled paper. For packaging materials, the Ministry of Agriculture will also assist more agricultural enterprise products to obtain carbon labels, encourage operators to reduce carbon emissions, and develop carbon reduction technologies.
Miaoli Agricultural Reform Market emphasized that in order to encourage consumers to purchase products with carbon footprint labels, more businesses and manufacturers will join the green carbon ranks and produce low-carbon products, which will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In the future, the market will continue to Provide guidance on the carbon footprint inventory of agricultural products, encourage industry players to reduce carbon emissions and develop carbon reduction technologies, and work together to move towards the sustainable carbon reduction of agricultural products. We will try to switch to container packaging materials made of recycled paper.
Product Carbon Footprint Label Certificate for "400g Plastic Suitcase of Strawberries". Image source: Provided by Miaoli District Agricultural Improvement Station of the Ministry of Agriculture
Source: Environmental Information Center
