IFCO targets one megaton of annual customer carbon savings by 2030

IFCO, a leading global provider of reusable packaging solutions for fresh foods, has announced its 2030 ESG goals, building on a record year of environmental savings achieved together with customers in 2025. These savings demonstrate that each year, the company’s circular business model delivers increasing, measurable environmental benefits – reinforcing that its ambitious 2030 goals are grounded in proven progress.

In 2025 alone, by replacing single use packaging with reusable solutions, IFCO customers avoided and reduced over 803 million kilograms of CO₂e, alongside substantial savings in water, energy, material use, and food waste.

These results highlight a clear trajectory of growing impact and form the foundation for IFCO’s newly announced 2030 ESG strategy, ‘Thriving with Purpose’, which aims to help customers save and avoid 1 megaton of carbon emissions per year by 2030, while accelerating progress in water stewardship, circular materials, and food waste reduction.

‘At IFCO, sustainability progress is something we measure, verify, and deliver year after year together with our customers,’ said Mike Pooley, CEO. ‘Our record 2025 results show that circularity at scale works. The 2030 ESG goals build on this momentum, setting ambitious but achievable targets that are fully embedded in how we operate and grow our business globally.’

The company’s 2025 sustainability certificates provide customers with verified data on the environmental savings achieved by replacing single use packaging with its SmartCycle pooling system. Using lifecycle assessments aligned with ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 and reviewed by independent third parties, the certificates quantify verified savings compared with conventional single use corrugated packaging.

Global 2025 savings include:

• 803,500 tonnes of CO₂e, equivalent to driving around the planet 157,700 times by car.

• 56.7 million m³ of water, equivalent to 22,700 Olympic size swimming pools.

• 16.6 million GJ of energy, equivalent to the annual energy consumption of 798,500 households.

• 1.44 million tonnes of solid waste, equivalent to the yearly solid waste of 2.9 million people.

• 74,450 tonnes of produce waste, equivalent to 118.9 million meals saved.

IFCO’s 2030 ESG goals outline a measurable roadmap to scale the impact of its circular business model, structured around three pillars: business, planet, and society.

Key goals include:

• Helping customers avoid one megaton of carbon emissions per year by 2030, supported by transparent methodologies that quantify customer level climate benefits.  

• Delivering near term Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) targets by 2031 and working toward a validated net-zero SBTi target by 2030.

• Achieving 100% renewable electricity across key service centre partners and key reusable packaging manufacturers by 2030.

• Maintaining zero waste to landfill every year, with all products upcycled into new reusable products at end of life, alongside innovation to reduce reliance on virgin plastics.

• Partnering with food banks globally to support the delivery of 500,000 tonnes of food by 2030, strengthening food security while reducing waste.

These new targets build on strong progress already achieved under IFCO’s previous ESG strategy 2025, including a 37% reduction in carbon emissions per crate, a 10% reduction in water use per crate, and the transition to 100% renewable electricity across its own operations.

Delivery of the 2030 ESG strategy will be underpinned by rigorous governance, with ESG performance managed alongside financial performance. The strategy is informed by CSRD requirements, insights from the Double Materiality Assessment, and international standards such as ISO, while remaining inspired by the B Corp framework.

‘Our Thriving with Purpose strategy reflects a broader vision of sustainability. While circularity remains central, our new focus highlights creating shared value for people, communities, and the planet – embedding purpose into everything we do,’ said Iñigo Canalejo, vice president ESG and strategic marketing.