Ben Daniels, MD Ritter Sport UK & Ireland, said: “We are extremely proud that Ritter Sport is now a CO2-neutral company, another huge milestone in our brand’s sustainability journey. Our CO2-neutral status is the result of decades-long passion for sustainability and the environment, from the Ritter family owners, throughout every level of our organisation, permeating every function. That passion is at the very heart of our culture.”
Ritter Sport started its journey to climate neutrality 20 years ago with the aim to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions generated at the company’s sites in Germany, as well as the other emissions over which the company has a direct influence.
Since 2002, Ritter Sport has sourced energy for its production sites solely from renewable resources. The company has built its own power and heating plant on site, which now covers almost 70% of its heat requirements and 40% of the electricity requirements at its site in Waldenbuch, Germany.
Sustainability milestone
The sustainability milestone has been verified and validated retroactively by independent external testing body, TÜV Nord Cert GmbH, the company stated. The calculations on which the status is based were made in accordance with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol/ISO 14064.
“We know our customers and consumers alike, actively seek out brands and businesses who have sustainability excellence and transparency in their value chains, and who endeavour to do their part on key societal issues such as climate change. It’s often not the cheapest or quickest way of operating a business, but it is the right way, and we are all about doing the right things to create really good chocolate,” said Daniels.
Cocoa farm
Ritter Sport also owns its own cocoa farm in Nicaragua, EL CACAO, one of the largest cocoa farms in the world, with approximately half of the 2,500-hectare site uncultivated forest left for nature and wildlife to thrive.
The rest of the site is home to over 1.7 million cocoa trees. EL CACAO has been recognised as a gold standard climate protection project.
Ritter Sport’s said future plans include generating its own climate-protection certificates from the site itself.