Nestlé Tracks Thai Reforestation with Airbus
Nestlé S.A.
Nestlé is testing the use of Airbus satellites to oversee reforestation amidst growing worldwide apprehension regarding consumer goods companies' efforts to diminish their carbon footprints.
Nestlé stated that Airbus' Pléiades Neo satellites would offer high-resolution images in the southern Thai provinces of Ranong and Chumphon. The images will assist in verifying the growth of trees planted by Nestle in the sourcing regions and ensuring their long-term survival. Nestlé is the largest food company in the world.
Magdi Batato, Executive VP and Head of Operations at Nestlé informed Reuters that using Airbus satellites for monitoring reforestation is a more precise method, as it provides details up to 30 cm, equivalent to the size of a sheet of paper.
Batato also highlighted the significance of landscape restoration in carbon removal, which has become increasingly important as per the European Union's Green Taxonomy, emphasising the need to address several aspects of landscapes.
Nestlé's objective to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 includes the crucial aspect of planting and nurturing 200 million trees across its supply chain by 2030 under its global reforestation initiative. The company has already obtained 12.4 million trees through reforestation schemes in Australia, China, Ghana, and Thailand in 2022.
Nestlé plans to use Airbus satellites to oversee the growth of over 150,000 shade trees on coffee farms, from which it sources coffee, for 20 years. By doing so, the company aims to prevent the over-exposure of coffee plants to the sun, promote sustainable yield, and enhance productivity. Nestlé stated that the shade trees also help remove carbon from the environment.
Nestlé's Global Head of Climate and Sustainable Sourcing, Benjamin Ware, stated that the company aims to sequester 200,000 metric tonnes of carbon through the project's lifetime. He added that the company believed one tonne of carbon can be "sunk" with six shade trees.
Source: Reuters
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