Climate Change
We are more than a neutral observer when it comes to tackling climate change.
As part of our commitment to help combat climate change, LDC sets global, time-bound targets to reduce our environmental impact and leverage our position as a major industry player to drive positive change with our business partners.
The Challenge
Climate change is one of the world’s greatest challenges and a major one for the agricultural sector.
Global warming is changing the planet’s weather patterns and average temperatures, which threatens to alter the land area suitable for agriculture and increase the spread of pests and diseases.
At the same time, feeding an estimated world population of 9 billion in 2050 will require 50% more agricultural production and 15% higher withdrawals of water.
There has never been a greater need for our sector to source and distribute our products reliably and responsibly, reduce the environmental impact of our activities and look for innovative solutions to the future of food.
Targeting Reductions
LDC is working to improve its performance in four key areas:
Greenhouse Gas Emissions – reducing CO2 emissions by introducing innovative processes, leveraging new technology and opting for renewable energy sources.
Energy Consumption – refining our energy footprint measurements and introducing efficiencies wherever possible to reduce power consumption.
Water Usage – minimizing freshwater use, finding ways to recycle wastewater and ensuring that wastewater does not cause pollution at processing assets.
Solid Waste Generation – saving resources through reuse, recycling and upcycling of processing by-products, and ensuring proper waste disposal to avoid pollution.
All our business regions have targets to contribute to our global reduction goals, as well as systems and targets to generate efficiencies – right down to facility level. Some recent examples:
- In 2021, our coffee plant in El Cofre, Mexico, shifted to renewable energy by installing photovoltaic panels on the plant rooftop, reducing the facility’s Scope 2 emissions to zero.
- In 2021, our grains and oilseeds facility in Claypool, Indiana, US, began replacing a large proportion of required packaging with more sustainable totes, made and assembled locally. This action reduced the site’s solid waste sent to landfill by over 20% year on year.
- In our soy processing facility in Zhangjiagang, China, we installed a bypass at the head of the elevator in 2021, increasing transportation efficiency, reducing the need for storage and saving power. As a result, the site’s power consumption decreased by 0.24 kWh/MT year-on-year.
- At our crushing plant in Yorkton, Saskatchewan, Canada, a new three-way process flow loop, redirecting water coming out of the cooling loop to the boiler feed water, allows the flow of cooler water to cool the finished oil product, reducing water usage in the summer (over 9,800m3 saved in 2021) and generating thermal savings.
| GLOBAL ABSOLUTE | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
| GHG Scope 1 (tCO2) | 990,755 | 990,055 | 992,704 |
| GHG Scope 2 (tCO2) | 460,557 | 459,071 | 443,921 |
| Water (m3) | 29,815,673 | 32,913,978 | 30,151,576 |
Positive Influence
Our position as a leading merchant and processor presents both a responsibility and an opportunity when it comes to climate change.
Engaging actively with farmers, suppliers and partners around the world, we influence and encourage them to adopt sustainable practices and reduce emissions.
We do this by:
- Training farmers in sustainable techniques, and providing tools to help them adapt to a changing climate;
- Working with freight industry partners to find efficient product shipping solutions, reducing emissions and costs;
- Advancing toward zero deforestation targets within our palm oil and soy supply chains;
- Promoting sustainable practices throughout our commodity supply chains.