Lidl Switzerland is positioning itself as a sustainable retailer with the vision of "simply sustainable shopping for everyone". Since 2014, Lidl Switzerland has therefore made great strides in the area of sustainability and, in collaboration with Swiss Climate, has achieved the status of the first climate-neutral retailer in Switzerland.
In line with Lidl Switzerland's vision, a holistic CO2 management system has been established with Swiss Climate since 2013. This includes the development of a strategy, a CO2 balance and reduction measures. In order to go one step further and offset the company's greenhouse gas emissions with high-quality climate protection projects, Lidl Switzerland commissioned Swiss Climate to develop a suitable offsetting strategy in cooperation with South Pole. Every year, Lidl Switzerland now supports valuable climate protection projects. For these steps, Lidl Switzerland was awarded the label: CO2-NEUTRAL by Swiss Climate.
Offsetting strategy
Each year, Lidl Switzerland selects a mix of different project types and project regions to match its own business activities. Based on the percentage of emissions in different areas (e.g. transport, energy and paper), projects are selected that are a good match for the remaining emissions. In partnership with the South Pole Group, Swiss Climate puts together an attractive mix of high-quality projects in Switzerland and abroad. Carbon offsets not only contribute to climate change mitigation, but also support sustainable development and contribute to the various United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
"Thanks to our collaboration with Swiss Climate, we have a detailed picture of our greenhouse gas emissions and have been able to significantly reduce our operational carbon footprint over the years. Swiss Climate has supported us in the development of innovative projects and guarantees the efficient processing of our annual carbon footprint. We particularly appreciate the fact that the company is large enough to easily handle peaks in workload, yet small enough to guarantee very personal support".
Julia Baumann, Head of Sustainability, Lidl Switzerland
The following Swiss Climate services have been used in this project
CO2 Management
CO2 offsetting