Survey confirms Metro’s strategy on environment

A survey by the British International Freight Association (BIFA) confirms that freight forwarders are coming under increasing pressure from customers to show evidence of decarbonisation, while those same customers need to get ready for carbon emission audits now.

The BIFA survey found that legislation compelling change in logistics decarbonisation will be a primary driver for respondents, with nearly a third citing client pressure as the leading motivator.

Results show 69% of respondents consider calculating emissions is part of their daily activities, yet 22% had assigned budgets of under £1,000 for green initiatives within their organisation. 

The conclusion is that there is growing awareness of environmental issues among the BIFA membership and, to some extent, a growing awareness of the need to measure carbon emissions and provide that information to clients.

It is also clear that it will be challenging to determine how they will use this data, and what they can actually do to reduce their carbon emissions. The general consensus is that significant changes will be required by forwarders, but what these will be are not clear at the moment.

The BIFA survey highlights just how far ahead Metro’s environmental strategy and actions are!

In consultation with customers Metro began development of our MVT ECO module in 2021. 

Today Metro is measuring and monitoring the emissions of every shipment, by every mode, for all of our customers, with offsetting alternatives, so they can work towards carbon neutrality in their global supply chain. 

As of 1st July 2023, MVT Eco has reported on 86,766 shipments, with a total CO2 equivalent of 279,864.58 tonnes.

Metro has committed to environmental transparency, using international sustainability reporting standards and through ISO 14001 accreditation, Metro has been fully offsetting emissions through verified carbon offsets.

Metro has been certified Carbon Neutral for two years.

The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) that becomes effective from 2024 will extend a company’s obligation to report on sustainability issues, to stimulate the EU’s transition to a sustainable economy.

However, it is likely to cause headaches for companies needing to report on Scope 3 emissions, which are outside their immediate control and brings reporting on emissions to the same level as financial auditing.

Scope 1 emissions are produced directly by companies, while Scope 2 is mainly from energy that is bought in and Scope 3 accounts for all other indirect emissions, the majority of which are in the supply chain. 

Scope 3 emissions account for the most – typically 10 times those of Scope 1 and 2 combined – and they are the hardest to measure, requiring a reliable, automated way to collect data and analyse it against targets.

UK companies operating in the EU will need to report Scope 3 emissions in CSRD and while reporting is currently voluntary in the UK, it will inevitably become mandatory.

MVT Eco uses reporting methodology that is in conformance with the Global Logistics Emissions Council (GLEC) and incorporates 30 pre-built charts and downloadable statements, to simplify Scope 3 reporting compliance for customers in the EU and UK.

The MVT ECO module is available free-of-charge to customers on their MVT dashboard. To request a demo or discuss your requirements, please EMAIL Simon George.