Carbon calculations for EXBERRY® colors
As consumers seek out more sustainable food and drink, brands are increasingly looking to optimize the carbon footprint of their recipes.
To support this shift, we offer carbon footprint data across scopes 1, 2, and 3 for the colors in our plant-based EXBERRY® portfolio.
EXBERRY® Concept: Citrus Sunset
We have developed a beverage concept for Food Ingredients Europe 2024 to demonstrate how our colors factor into products’ overall footprint. The mandarin-flavored non-alcoholic drink is created with EXBERRY® Shade Lemon Yellow and EXBERRY® Shade Vivid Red to deliver an appealing orange shade.
Citrus Sunset Carbon Footprint Calculation
The recipe of Citrus Sunset has an estimated overall footprint of 0.08 kg carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) per liter excluding packaging and refrigeration. This breaks down as follows:
| Ingredient | % of product by weight (w/w) | Emission factor (kg CO2e emissions / kg) | Total CO2e contribution | % of total emissions | Source for emission factor |
| Water | 94.7% | <0.001 kg CO2e | <0.001 kg CO2e | 0.4% | EcoInvent |
| Sucrose | 4.4% | 0.71 kg CO2e | 0.03 kg CO2e | 38.1% | Beet sugar (Sucrose) · 0.71 kg CO₂e/kg | Verified by CarbonCloud |
| Apple juice concentrate | 0.5% | 2.45 kg CO2e | 0.01 kg CO2e | 14.8% | Apple juice concentrate · 2.45 kg CO₂e/kg | Verified by CarbonCloud |
| Flavors | 0.2% | 18 kg CO2e | 0.03 CO2e | 37.8% | Natural flavoring, generic. Europe · 17.95 kg CO₂e/kg | Verified by CarbonCloud |
| Sweeteners and citric acid | 0.3% | Various | 0.01 kg CO2e | 6.4% | |
| Shade Lemon Yellow (safflower and lemon concentrate) | 0.03% | 5.5 kg CO2e | <0.002 kg CO2e | 2.0% | |
| Shade Vivid Red (carrot and blackcurrant concentrate) | 0.01% | 3.9 kg CO2e | <0.001 kg CO2e | 0.6% | |
| Total | 0.08 kg CO2e |
Get in touch with our experts now!
EXBERRY® therefore provides just 2.6% of Citrus Sunset’s total carbon emissions. Get in touch with our experts now to find out how we can deliver sustainable, plant-based coloring solutions for your products.
Disclaimer
This document provides a Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) for the EXBERRY® product(s). The data reflects the situation and GNT’s state of knowledge at the time of publication and is intended to offer general information on the products and their application possibilities. No rights may be derived from the contents of this publication. The estimate is based on certain assumptions, estimates, and limitations that may impact the accuracy, reliability, or value of the data.
Methodology
The PCF estimate includes emissions data related to energy consumption, ingredients, and an overhead factor. Emissions from energy consumption are directly attributed to the manufacturing process, while emissions related to ingredients include calculations of specific emissions from raw materials, ingredients, food additives, and processing aids. An overhead factor accounts for general emissions from GNT that are not product-specific.
Scope
The PCF estimate is limited to raw materials, ingredients, upstream transportation, energy consumption during manufacturing, and the overhead factor. The scope aligns with the “cradle-to-gate” definition in linear product systems. The overall data quality is estimated to be “fair” with an accuracy range of +/- 20%.
Certification and Use
The calculations are based on GNT proprietary methodology and data sources and were not conducted in accordance with the ISO 14040/14044 standard or the GHG Product Life Cycle Accounting and Reporting Standard. This may impact the comparability of the PCF results with studies conducted under those standards. However, emission factors validated through the ISO 14064 audit process have been used to ensure transparency and credibility.