Reducing greenhouse gas emissions and protecting resources
The business operations of the ALDI North Group contribute to the emission of greenhouse gases and require natural resources. The sources of these impacts range from lighting, heating and water supply to our buildings, through transport and cooling of our goods, to the disposal of their packaging. Our holistic interpretation of sustainability entails that we take responsibility not only for the manufacture of our products but in all areas where our actions exert an impact.
Our aim is to reduce the consequences of our business operations on the climate and the environment. We have established this aspiration in our Corporate Responsibility (CR) Policy. Our CR Programme defines clear targets that we are gradually implementing. On the basis of the proven ALDI North Group principle expressed as “Focusing on the essentials”, we are taking action and deploying measures where we can achieve the greatest impacts. We are continuously improving our energy efficiency and expanding the proportion of renewable energies in our electricity supply. Modern logistics concepts are assisting us in shortening transport routes for goods and therefore making this more climate friendly. We are reducing waste by increasingly deploying multiple-use systems in logistics. A very large proportion of packaging materials are recycled and further utilised.
These measures are contributing to reducing our environmental footprint and they are reducing costs at the same time. We are also increasing the trust of our stakeholder groups in our holistic engagement.
Systematically incorporating specialist expertise
A range of business processes are used to control matters relating to energy, logistics, waste and water. We systematically integrate specialist expertise from the relevant departments. Depending on the issues, the strategic concepts, targets and measures are developed by the working groups, specialist departments and the CR department. This is carried out in consultation with the CR managers of the ALDI North Group in all countries. As necessary, strategic concepts are modified in accordance with the requirements of local circumstances and adjusted to national legislation, and measures are rolled out on the basis of individual responsibility. The development towards more climate friendly logistics, which was established within ALDI Buying in 2015, is being driven forward in conjunction with the working group. Communication on this issue is also taking place with the ALDI North Group companies in the relevant countries.
Climate protection and resource efficiency must be firmly anchored in our routine approach every day so that we can achieve our targets. The employees of the ALDI North Group are the key factor for success. The companies in the ALDI North Group therefore raise employees’ awareness for conscientious and ethical behaviour in their everyday working environment. The main issues here are lighting and waste separation. An example of this approach is provided by the training sessions carried out in Spain on energy-efficient operation of the air-conditioning systems, lighting on demand, and avoidance of heat losses between heated and cooled areas. We also raise the awareness of our employees in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and Portugal as to how they can save energy with measures in the stores and in logistics that can easily be put into practice.
Statutory regulations and guidelines define high requirements for operational climate and environmental protection. We take account of new regulations at an early stage and we also operate beyond the scope of the statutory requirements. Currently we are working on implementation of the environmental regulations laid down by the European Union (EU). These include EU Regulation 517/2014 relating to fluorinated greenhouse gases, the amendment to the EU Directive on Packaging and Packaging Waste (94/62/EEC) and the EU Energy Efficiency Directive (2012/27/EU). In Germany, the Energy Saving Regulation (EnEV) and the Energy Services Act (EDL-G) are also relevant to us.
Evaluation of energy consumption highlights potential for savings
The improvement of our energy efficiency is an important cornerstone for more climate protection. Precise knowledge of our consumption is absolutely essential in order to be in a position to determine the areas where we can save most energy. This data has therefore been analysed on a regular basis in the individual companies in the ALDI North Group for many years. Since 2015, we have bundled these activities in central CR data collection for the Sustainability Report. We record the consumption by business processes and break the data down by energy sources. We also determine the emissions that result from our consumption. In future, the consumption data will be evaluated by the CR department and the specialist department Property and Expansion in order to derive appropriate measures.
Direct energy consumption in buildings and logistics by energy sources (in MWh)1
The biggest part of direct energy consumption is attributable to the use of natural gas for heat generation, and to diesel used as a fuel in logistics. Total consumption increased slightly compared with 2014. This is mainly due to increased consumption of natural gas as a result of a colder winter in some countries and the expansion of sites.
2014 | 2015 | |
Belgium/Luxembourg2 | 99,607 | 109,350 |
Denmark | 18,309 | 19,783 |
Germany | 370,237 | 385,846 |
France | 142,110 | 144,412 |
Netherlands | 76,905 | 80,119 |
Poland | 9,092 | 12,896 |
Portugal | 989 | 1,013 |
Spain | 4,199 | 4,171 |
ALDI North Group | 721,448 | 757,590 |
1 The data are partly based on estimates and extrapolations.
2 ALDI Belgium and ALDI Luxembourg are legally independent companies (see “About this Report“).
Direct energy consumption by source 2015
Natural gas | 409,455 |
Heating oil | 26,672 |
Biogas | 154 |
Diesel (incl. diesel generators) | 320,808 |
Petrol | 67 |
Liquid petroleum gas (LPG) | 434 |
Key figure: Indirect energy consumption
Strom- und Fernwärmeverbrauch (in MWh)1
Der Stromverbrauch unserer Standorte ist mit knapp 923 GWh für den größten Teil des Energiebedarfs verantwortlich. Er ist mit rund drei Prozent nur unwesentlich gegenüber dem Vorjahr gestiegen. Die Erhöhung beruht unter anderem auf längeren Betriebszeiten in den niederländischen Logistik- und Verwaltungsstandorten sowie der Ausstattung von Filialen in Spanien mit zusätzlichen Kühltruhen und Backautomaten.
2014 | 2015 | |||||
Gesamt | Strom | Fernwärme | Gesamt | Strom | Fernwärme | |
Belgien/Luxemburg2 | 87.581 |
87.581 | – | 87.895 |
87.895 |
– |
Dänemark | 49.605 |
38.758 |
10.847 |
48.751 |
39.659 |
9.092 |
Deutschland | 456.809 |
441.748 |
15.061 |
443.473 | 429.008 |
14.465 |
Frankreich | 157.429 |
157.429 |
– | 178.092 |
178.092 |
– |
Niederlande | 75.566 |
74.831 |
735 |
79.138 | 78.119 | 1.019 |
Polen | 13.671 |
12.444 |
1.227 |
17.394 |
16.110 |
1.284 |
Portugal | 12.479 |
12.479 |
– | 14.113 |
14.113 |
– |
Spanien | 67.928 |
67.928 |
– | 79.694 |
79.694 |
– |
Unternehmensgruppe | 921.068 |
893.198 |
27.870 |
948.550 |
922.690 |
25.860 |
1 Die Daten beruhen zum Teil auf Schätzungen und Hochrechnungen.
2 ALDI Belgien und ALDI Luxemburg sind rechtlich selbstständige Gesellschaften (siehe „Über diesen Bericht“).
Key figure: Greenhouse gas emissions Scope 1 und 2
Treibhausgasemissionen Scope 1 und 2 (in Tonnen CO2-Äquivalente)
Die Treibhausgasemissionen wurden auf Basis der Energie- und Kraftstoffverbräuche sowie Kältemittelverluste ermittelt. Die Berechnung folgt den Anforderungen des Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocols, unter Verwendung der DEFRA-Emissionsfaktoren 2015 beziehungsweise GEMIS 2015 für die Emissionen aus Fernwärmebezug. Für die Emissionen aus dem Stromverbrauch in Deutschland wurde der spezifische Emissionsfaktor des Energielieferanten zugrunde gelegt. Der Gesamtwert setzt sich zusammen aus direkten (Scope 1) und indirekten Emissionen (Scope 2). Während die Scope-2-Emissionen aufgrund gesunkener Emissionsfaktoren leicht zurückgegangen sind, haben sich die direkten Emissionen leicht erhöht. Grund ist unter anderem die umfassendere Datenbasis zu Emissionen aus Kältemittelverlusten 2015 gegenüber 2014. Hinzu kommt ein gestiegener Erdgasverbrauch, der zu einer Erhöhung der Scope-1-Emissionen führt.
2014 | 2015 | |||||
Gesamt | Scope 11 | Scope 22 | Gesamt | Scope 11 | Scope 22 | |
Belgien/Luxemburg3 | 55.209 | 37.536 | 17.673 | 68.806 | 51.585 | 17.221 |
Dänemark | 23.509 | 9.963 | 13.546 | 23.601 | 10.862 | 12.739 |
Deutschland | 381.697 | 113.483 | 268.214 | 377.082 | 118.004 | 259.078 |
Frankreich | 77.520 | 67.917 | 9.603 | 79.299 | 68.856 | 10.443 |
Niederlande | 74.042 | 46.780 | 27.262 | 58.727 | 30.671 | 28.056 |
Polen | 12.308 | 2.174 | 10.134 | 32.112 | 19.196 | 12.916 |
Portugal | 5.163 | 1.382 | 3.781 | 5.512 | 1.529 | 3.983 |
Spanien | 25.344 | 5.596 | 19.748 | 35.225 | 12.237 | 22.988 |
Unternehmensgruppe | 654.792 | 284.831 | 369.961 | 680.364 | 312.940 | 367.424 |
1 Scope 1: Emissionen aus direktem Energieverbrauch Gebäude, Kraftstoffverbrauch Logistik und Kältemittelverlusten.
2 Scope 2: Emissionen aus Strom- und Fernwärmeverbrauch.
3 ALDI Belgien und ALDI Luxemburg sind rechtlich selbstständige Gesellschaften (siehe „Über diesen Bericht“).
Key figure: Greenhouse gas emissions Scope 1 and 2 by sources 2015
Total amount of greenhouse gas emissions for Scope 1 and 2 proportionately by sources (in percent)
As is typically the case in the retail industry, we are able to save the most energy in lighting and cooling at our stores. There is also significant potential for savings with cooling technology at our distribution centres. This was confirmed not least in the energy audits defined under statutory regulations which we carried out at selected companies of the ALDI North Group in Belgium, Germany, Denmark and France at the end of 2015 (see interview on energy audit). The energy consumption for this was broken down in detail by consumption points such as freezers, baking ovens, air-conditioning systems, heating systems, heating for hot water and office lighting. At the end of 2015, implementation of the energy audit was started at ALDI Netherlands. In Spain, relevant statutory regulations came into force at the beginning of 2016 – this is why ALDI Spain is currently working with external service providers on implementing the energy audit.
We are currently developing a concept for an energy monitoring and management system in order to determine the potential for additional increases in our energy efficiency. The system permits a very detailed evaluation of current energy consumption and will be finished by 2017.
Furthermore, all consumption data form the necessary foundation in order to develop a concept for systematic reduction of our CO2 emissions. This will merge the diverse climate protection measures carried out in the ALDI North Group by 2017.
Interview: The ALDI North Group gets fit in energy efficiency
Following the amendment to the German Energy Services Act (EDL-G), the ALDI North Group will be carrying out energy audits in a four-year cycle from December 2015. In 2015, six companies in the ALDI North Group and ALDI Purchasing implemented energy audits on behalf of all the German companies. Heinz-Bernd Eden, Managing Director of the regional company in Greven, explains the background.
The German Act on Energy Services and Other Energy Efficiency Measures (EDL-G) was amended in 2015. What has changed as far as the company is concerned?
Eden: The act has implemented the Energy Efficiency Directive of the EU in national law. The objective of the directive is to achieve a 20 percent increase in energy efficiency in Europe by 2020. The most far-reaching change for companies is that energy audits have been a statutory obligation for large companies since December 2015 and they have to be repeated every four years.
What exactly is an energy audit?
Eden: An energy audit as defined in the German Energy Services Act encompasses systematic inspection and analysis of the energy flows of a company. It creates transparency and is intended to identify potential energy savings and leverage these efficiencies. The results are recorded in a report. The audit must be carried out in conformity with the European DIN EN 16247-1 standard.
That sounds rather theoretical …
Eden: This is what we thought at the start! That’s why we set up a workshop series with an energy services provider to carry out a trial run. We included six companies and ALDI Purchasing in this exercise. This “Help for Self-Help” comprised five workshops, verifying the plausibility of our data by certified and accredited auditors on site and an audited report.
What did the participants in the workshops learn?
Eden: The workshop series has meant that all the participants have been able to learn how to record energy supply at the level of the consumer – whether this relates to freezers, baking overs, air-conditioning systems, heating systems, heating for hot water or simply office lighting. Furthermore, the participants were enabled to identify initiatives for energy optimisation.
What happens to the results of the energy audit?
Eden: We are currently considering the development of an energy savings manual for retail outlets and logistics centres with tips on the topic of energy saving. The issue of lighting is also at the top of our agenda. A pilot project is already running in Osnabrück-Belm.
Thank you very much for talking to us.
Lighting and cooling as a central lever for savings
We want to reduce energy consumption in the buildings of our stores, distribution centres and administrative buildings. The biggest potential for savings is in the areas of lighting and cooling technology. This is why many of our measures are deployed there. As early as 2013, we launched a project for optimising energy at our stores in Germany. The long-term goal is to eliminate most of our use of fossil, non-renewable combustion fuels throughout the ALDI North Group in our new stores. We are currently trying to achieve this in a pilot project in Germany.
Efficient lighting with LED technology
LED lighting systems use up to 50 percent less electricity than our existing lighting system. Today, LED lighting is already being used a great deal in outside areas and for promotional systems. From 2016, LED lighting will also be used for interior lighting in all new stores. In the period up to 2019, we will be carrying out a review for the ALDI North Group with a view to gradually converting all existing stores and distribution centres to LED lighting. The potential of LEDs for saving energy has been confirmed in a number of pilot stores which were entirely converted to LED. The first distribution centres – for example in Belgium – have also been entirely equipped with LED lighting. In 2016, ALDI Portugal opened its first store with an LED lighting system for interior lighting.
Since 2015, we have been using on-demand lighting in the warehouses and utility rooms at newly constructed stores in order to reduce the amount of energy used for lighting. The lights are automatically switched on and off using movement and heat sensors. Windows reaching down to ground level are also used in the store premises so as take maximum advantage of daylight. This measure reduces the use of artificial lighting and saves energy as well.
Our new store concept: bright, energy efficient premises
The new stores in the ALDI North Group have average floor space of 1,000 to 1,200 square metres and they offer our customers and employees significantly more space. Windows reaching down to ground level let in a great deal of daylight and reduce the need for artificial lighting. Starting in 2016, only energy efficient LED lamps will be used wherever artificial lighting is required. In 2011, the first store based on the new concept opened in Mariakerke in Belgium. From 2012, the first new stores based on this concept were opened in companies throughout the ALDI North Group.
Reducing the energy requirement for cooling technology
Cooling technology is another important starting point for more climate protection. Many of our goods are chilled or frozen. These are energy-intensive processes. Self-defrosting freezers are one of the measures we use in order to keep this consumption to a minimum. LED systems are also deployed to illuminate the freezers. LED systems not only consume less electricity, they also generate less heat than conventional lighting systems. This enables us to further reduce the energy necessary for freezing. In 2013, we started to use these technologies in new freezers. We have used cool air curtain technology at our open chiller shelves for many years, which protects the cool environment against the ingress of heat from outside. The shelves are fitted with night-time roller shutters to seal them after closing time. As a comparison, the use of glass doors can increase energy consumption. This is because customers frequently open and close the doors. The energy-saving compressors and fans enable us to reduce the energy consumption of the chiller shelves by between four and six percent. Apart from Germany, the technologies described are also being used in other countries where the ALDI North Group is operating.
Refrigerants: measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
Cooling our products also requires the use of refrigerants. However, the most commonly used refrigerants have a great deal of global warming potential: They can leak into the atmosphere and in this way contribute to global warming. A comparative analysis of our emission sources revealed that around 20 percent of our greenhouse gas emissions result from refrigerant leakage.
The current level of technology does not permit leakages to be entirely eliminated. We are therefore also introducing a digital monitoring system in addition to regular leakage tests at all our German locations. Digital data capture and evaluation enables the system to provide a fast overview of all the cooling systems. This means that leakage rates can be reduced. Since 2014, we have been testing the MobiLec leakage monitoring system in a pilot project at our regional company in Scharbeutz. Since then, fitters have been able to enter all refrigerant leakages in the system directly from the store. In 2015, this enabled us to reduce the leakage rate there to around one percent.
At the same time, we are increasingly replacing the existing refrigerants with climate friendly alternatives – so far in Germany, Denmark and Poland. At these locations, we are gradually converting all chiller and freezer cabinets to the natural refrigerant propane. Its Global Warming Potential is 1,300 times less than the common commercial coolant R404A. In Germany, around 50 percent of the refrigerants has already been converted. We are also currently planning to test the use of CO2 as a refrigerant at two stores in Germany. In Denmark, we are also using propylene glycol and water as a refrigerant. The Global Warming Potential of CO2 and propylene glycol is even lower than propane. Since the generally higher temperatures in Portugal place different demands on cooling there, the use of climate friendly alternatives is still being reviewed. R404A continues to be used frequently at our distribution centres. Here too we want to make increasing use of CO2. We are currently trialling the use of ice storage at a pilot project in Greven. This enables energy generated from a photovoltaic system to be stored on demand and this enhances the energy efficiency of the combined cooling and heating system.
Saving heat energy through heat dissipation
At 65 stores in Germany, we are currently using the heat dissipated from our systems for heating purposes. This is being achieved with the deployment of heat recovery systems which make use of heat from the exhaust air generated by ventilation systems to heat buildings. This technology is also being used at selected stores in other countries where the ALDI North Group is operating: since 2013 in ALDI Netherlands, since 2014 in Poland, and from 2016 in France.
In Germany, we are currently using combined cooling and heating systems at around 80 stores. The systems are also linked to cooling units in order to make use of the dissipated heat. They also permit a real-time evaluation of energy consumption for all devices and help us to monitor the efficiency of the systems. These technologies enable us to significantly reduce the necessary heat energy required for each store. The system has been used in Belgium since 2015 and it is being expanded to other stores in 2016.
Solar energy for generating electricity
We are not only improving our energy efficiency in order to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. Renewable energies are also being increasingly used for generating electricity. Since 2012, we have been installing photovoltaic systems on more and more buildings in a number of countries. In 2015, all the installed systems in the ALDI North Group generated a joint rated output of around 14,000 kWp. This means we produced approximately 7,800 MWh of electricity – enough to supply electricity to an average of 1,950 family households in Europe over the course of a year. Consequently, we were able to eliminate emissions amounting to some 4,680 metric tons of CO2.
We only use a part of the electricity generated by our photovoltaic systems. In 2015, the proportion was around 64 percent. Excess energy that we do not use ourselves is fed into the electricity grid – for example when more electricity is generated in the summer than we are able to use. We are currently testing a new configuration of solar modules at the German locations so that they can provide a more uniform output distributed over the course of the day. Alignment with combined cooling and heating systems enables us to increase our own share of generated solar energy that we are able to use for our own purposes. This not only reduces our CO2 emissions but also makes sense from an economic point of view.
Our innovative use of renewable energies
Since November 2015, a combined cooling and heating system has been coupled with an energy storage system at a new ALDI North Group store in Greven, Westphalia. The concept is based on a solution that we developed in our Total Energy project. The store is also equipped with a photovoltaic system positioned with an ideal alignment to the sun, which can generate uniform quantities of electricity in the morning and the evening. So that we can use excess energy – for example from the middle of the day – at other times, we deploy modern storage technologies: ice storage and concrete core activation. This enables us to largely eliminate the use of fossil energy sources.
Key figure: Installed output of photovoltaic systems
Installed output of photovoltaic systems (in kWp)
2014 | 2015 | |
Belgium/Luxembourg1 | 181 | 438 |
Denmark | 25 | 35 |
Germany | 6,745 | 11,432 |
France | – | – |
Netherlands | – | 111 |
Poland | – | – |
Portugal | – | 866 |
Spain | 73 | 732 |
ALDI North Group | 7,024 | 13,614 |
1 ALDI Belgium and ALDI Luxembourg are legally independent companies (see “About this Report“).
Sunny prospects in Portugal: photovoltaic systems supply electricity for stores and electric cars
In 2015, ALDI Portugal started operating a photovoltaic system for the first time at its store in Marinha Grande. After a month, a comparison of the meter readings demonstrated that purchasing electricity from the grid was reduced by 61 percent. Photovoltaic systems have meanwhile been installed at another eight stores. Following approval by the Portuguese Economics Ministry, these systems are scheduled to be linked up with the grid in 2016. ALDI Portugal is also planning a pilot project for 2016 which will involve setting up a charging station for electric cars in the customer car park of a store. Photovoltaic electricity will be used as the source of power for this charging facility.
Erzeugter Strom aus Fotovoltaikanlagen und Eigenverbrauch (in MWh)
2014 | 2015 | |||
erzeugter Strom | Eigenverbrauch | erzeugter Strom | Eigenverbrauch | |
Belgien/Luxemburg1 | 38 | 37 | 275 | 205 |
Dänemark | – | – | 10 | 10 |
Deutschland | 3.744 | 2.194 | 7.093 | 4.383 |
Frankreich | – | – | – | – |
Niederlande | – | – | 190 | 166 |
Polen | – | – | – | – |
Portugal | – | – | 25 | 25 |
Spanien | 73 | 65 | 205 | 174 |
Unternehmensgruppe | 3.855 | 2.296 | 7.798 | 4.963 |
1 ALDI Belgien und ALDI Luxemburg sind rechtlich selbstständige Gesellschaften (siehe „Über diesen Bericht“).
Netherlands: green electricity from renewable sources
ALDI Netherlands is a member of the Sector Agreement of the Dutch Food Trading Association (Centraal Bureau Levensmiddelenhandel – CBL). This sector agreement states that ALDI Netherlands has made a commitment to insource at least ten percent of its electricity requirement from renewable sources – on top of the existing proportion of renewable energy in the energy mix of the country. A total of some 7,800 MWh of certified green electricity was purchased.
Our mission is for customers to have fresh produce and full shelves every day. We ensure that this is the case with efficient logistics for transporting our goods. We use optimum transport routes and pool our flow of goods where it increases efficiency. This enables us to reduce the fuel consumed for our transport vehicles and cut greenhouse gas emissions at the same time. We also reduce our fuel requirement by mounting roof spoilers on trucks, which reduce the drag coefficient for our transport vehicles, and by using low rolling resistance tyres. We are also reviewing alternative power units for our trucks in Germany.
In 2015, the ALDI North Group transported goods with a total volume of 29 million euro-pallet spaces between our 74 distribution centres and more than 4,800 stores. We undertake most of these transport journeys ourselves. Our vehicle fleet consists of 1,620 trucks for carrying out this logistic operation. The proportion of deliveries made by the vehicle fleet operated by the ALDI North Group amounts to 89 percent – this means we are able to exert a direct influence on the logistic processes. Poland, Portugal and Spain are the only countries where we do not operate our own vehicle fleet. In 2015, the fuel consumption of our logistic operation amounted to 19 percent of our energy requirement and caused around 13 percent of our CO2 emissions. Diesel represented the biggest share of our fuel consumption at 99 percent.
Key figure: Number of vehicles
Anzahl Fahrzeuge zum Stichtag 31.12. nach Fahrzeugart
2014 | 2015 | |||||
Anzahl Lkw | Anzahl Pkw | weitere Fahrzeuge1 | Anzahl Lkw | Anzahl Pkw | weitere Fahrzeuge1 | |
Belgien/Luxemburg2 | 213 | 180 | 7 | 217 | 185 | 8 |
Dänemark | 55 | 86 | 5 | 56 | 89 | 5 |
Deutschland | 914 | 850 | 73 | 909 | 909 | 74 |
Frankreich | 236 | 310 | 27 | 238 | 314 | 23 |
Niederlande | 201 | 184 | 8 | 200 | 188 | 8 |
Polen | – | 65 | 2 | – | 64 | 2 |
Portugal | – | 37 | 1 | – | 41 | 1 |
Spanien | – | 144 | – | – | 159 | – |
Unternehmensgruppe | 1.619 | 1.856 | 123 | 1.620 | 1.949 | 121 |
1 Dazu zählen Flurförderfahrzeuge und Fahrzeuge mit Treibgasantrieb.
2 ALDI Belgien und ALDI Luxemburg sind rechtlich selbstständige Gesellschaften (siehe „Über diesen Bericht“).
Key figure: Fuel consumption
Kraftstoffverbrauch von Lkw, Pkw und weiteren Fahrzeugen (in Litern beziehungsweise Kilogramm Treibgas)
2014 | 2015 | |||||
Diesel1 (l) | Benzin (l) | Treibgas (kg) | Diesel1 (l) | Benzin (l) | Treibgas (kg) | |
Belgien/Luxemburg2 | 3.991.141 | – | – | 4.215.607 | – | – |
Dänemark | 1.428.007 | 304 | 924 | 1.513.990 | – | 913 |
Deutschland | 16.346.023 | 9.856 | 20.435 | 16.335.662 | 7.368 | 21.365 |
Frankreich | 5.640.054 | – | 10.498 | 5.858.537 | – | 9.737 |
Niederlande | 3.553.070 | – | – | 3.575.724 | – | – |
Polen | 148.367 | – | 781 | 144.629 | – | 1.386 |
Portugal | 98.623 | – | 400 | 100.883 | – | 600 |
Spanien | 406.376 | – | – | 404.581 | – | – |
Unternehmensgruppe | 31.611.661 | 10.160 | 33.038 | 32.149.613 | 7.368 | 34.001 |
1 Inklusive Verbrauch von Heizöl zum Betrieb von Kühlmotoren (außerhalb Deutschlands).
2 ALDI Belgien und ALDI Luxemburg sind rechtlich selbstständige Gesellschaften (siehe „Über diesen Bericht“).
We work continuously on optimising deliveries to our stores in order to reduce our fuel consumption. All the trucks from the ALDI North Group are scheduled to leave our distribution centres with full payloads. Efficient route planning enables us to reduce the number of necessary journeys. In future, we will be in a position to provide even better analysis of goods movements with the help of a new inventory control system – in 2015, it was already successfully tested at our regional companies in Germany. By 2017, we want to have tested the use of alternative power units for vehicles which are more climate friendly.
Waste avoidance is a key target of our sustainable development. Where waste has not yet been eliminated, waste materials are recovered and forwarded for reuse. In some countries, we have a statutory obligation to recover waste. The biggest proportion of waste in food retailing is comprised of transport packaging and food that can no longer be sold. The results of our data capture also confirm this. Packaging waste makes up around 83 percent and this is the biggest proportion of the total waste generated by the ALDI North Group in Germany.
Key figure: Amount of waste
Abfallaufkommen nach Abfallart (in Tonnen)1
Die Abfallmenge in Deutschland blieb gegenüber 2014 weitgehend konstant, wobei der größte Teil unseres Abfallaufkommens auf Verpackungsabfälle zurückgeht. Gefährliche Abfälle machen mit 493 Tonnen nur rund 0,3 Prozent der gesamten Abfallmenge aus. Hierzu zählen vor allem Altöl, Ölfilter, Fahrzeugbatterien und Leuchtstoffröhren, die Quecksilber enthalten. Der Geltungsbereich der Erfassung soll für den nächsten Nachhaltigkeitsbericht auf weitere Länder der Unternehmensgruppe ausgeweitet werden.
2014 | 2015 | |
Deutschland | Deutschland | |
gefährliche Abfälle | 490 | 493 |
Papier/Pappe/Karton | 426 | 432 |
Siedlungsabfall2 | 20.006 | 22.129 |
Abfälle aus der Herstellung und Verarbeitung von Lebensmitteln3 | 6.859 | 8.173 |
Verpackungsabfälle | 156.461 | 156.658 |
davon Folie/Kunststoffe | 3.966 | 4.063 |
davon Pappe/Papier | 121.024 | 121.331 |
davon PET | 31.471 | 31.264 |
gebrauchte Geräte | 39 | 70 |
Gesamtabfallmenge | 184.281 | 187.955 |
1 Die Daten enthalten Hochrechnungen.
2 Gewerbliche Abfälle. Hierzu zählen unter anderem „Restmüll“, verpackte Lebensmittel, Sperrmüll, Holz und Metallschrott.
3 Hierzu zählen Abfälle aus dem Kantinenbetrieb und Bake-off-Ware.
Key figure: Amounts of waste by methods of disposal 2015
Amounts of waste in Germany proportionately by the type of disposal (in percent)1
The recycling rate of 98.4 percent was calculated excluding landfill and mass incineration.
1 Allocation to types of disposal is based partly on estimates or extrapolations.
2 Including incineration for energy recovery.
In order to avoid waste, we use multiple-use systems for our transport packaging wherever it makes economic and environmental sense. Most of our fruit and vegetable products are transported in multiple-use boxes instead of conventional cardboard packaging. The system is used in Belgium, Denmark, Germany, France, Luxembourg and Portugal. It was introduced in Spain at the beginning of 2016.
However, single-use packaging is unavoidable in many cases in order to protect our products during transport. In Germany, we use foils and boxes made of recyclable materials so that these can be recovered. The proportion of recovered transport packaging was 100 percent in 2015. The recycling rate of all non-hazardous waste reached 98 percent over the same period.
The ALDI North Group carrier bag: symbol for quality at a low price
Long-life and manufactured to conserve resources. Since 2014, the long-life shopping bag has been complementing our range of loop handle bags and cooling bags, and bakery product bags and string net bags for fruit and vegetables. Used PET bottles are the main material used for the manufacture of long-life shopping bags. In 2015, we sold more than six million long-life shopping bags to our customers.
For many years, the rather smaller loop-handle bag has been part of the cityscape in countries where the ALDI North Group is operating. This bag also helps to conserve resources since it is manufactured from recycled plastic. The proportion of recycled material is at least 80 percent. Foil waste from used transport packaging is used and this comes from a number of sources including our logistics department. For more than 15 years, it has been certified with the Blue Angel environmental label. Furthermore, we will review the introduction of additional sustainable alternatives to the range of bags in our stores in 2016.
Key figure: Number of bags provided
Number of bags provided by type (in thousands)
2014 | |||||
Shopping bags | Long-life shopping bags | Cooling bags | Bakery product bags | String net bags | |
Belgium/Luxembourg1 | 9,137 | 433 | 314 | – | – |
Denmark | 6,199 | 95 | 55 | 14,048 | 3,584 |
Germany | 47,371 | 1,036 | 837 | 109,632 | 147,711 |
France | 11,306 | 553 | 817 | 23,266 | 5,600 |
Netherlands | 7,138 | 432 | 191 | – | – |
Poland | 1,809 | – | – | – | 20,365 |
Portugal | 3,447 | 105 | 11 | 2,562 | 8,448 |
Spain | 9,079 | 242 | 46 | 22,258 | – |
ALDI North Group | 95,486 | 2,896 | 2,271 | 171,766 | 185,708 |
2015 | |||||
Shopping bags | Long-life shopping bags | Cooling bags | Bakery product bags | String net bags | |
Belgium/Luxembourg1 | 8,729 | 963 | 310 | 7,615 | – |
Denmark | 6,459 | 79 | 48 | 14,473 | 3,678 |
Germany | 46,627 | 1,753 | 878 | 118,652 | 184,744 |
France | 9,813 | 2,345 | 844 | 46,265 | 10,500 |
Netherlands | 6,392 | 465 | 192 | – | – |
Poland | 2,202 | 39 | – | – | 25,760 |
Portugal | 1,725 | 157 | 11 | 2,373 | 10,206 |
Spain | 9,079 | 216 | 46 | 23,160 | – |
ALDI North Group | 91,026 | 6,017 | 2,329 | 212,538 | 234,888 |
1 ALDI Belgium and ALDI Luxembourg are legally independent companies (see “About this Report“).
Key figure: Materials used for primary packaging
Weight of materials used for primary packaging (in metric tons)1, 2
2014 | 2015 | |||||||
Total | Wood, board, paper | Plastics | Other | Total | Wood, board, paper | Plastics | Other | |
Belgium/Luxembourg3 | 103,862 | 21,769 | 32,260 | 49,833 | 106,850 | 22,418 | 33,356 | 51,076 |
Denmark | 4,606 | 863 | 1,204 | 2,539 | 5,000 | 882 | 1,323 | 2,795 |
Germany | 610,449 | 85,166 | 175,408 | 349,875 | 584,192 | 83,163 | 177,909 | 323,120 |
France | 17,623 | 2,127 | 3,336 | 12,160 | 15,002 | 2,431 | 3,004 | 9,567 |
Netherlands | 98,970 | 11,660 | 22,169 | 65,141 | 97,233 | 12,368 | 22,747 | 62,118 |
Poland | 7,873 | 2,874 | 1,672 | 3,327 | 8,658 | 2,715 | 2,066 | 3,877 |
Portugal | 1,228 | 226 | 295 | 707 | 2,075 | 506 | 558 | 1,011 |
Spain | 15,514 | 1,464 | 5,522 | 8,528 | 20,125 | 4,857 | 6,354 | 8,914 |
ALDI North Group | 860,125 | 126,149 | 241,866 | 492,110 | 839,135 | 129,340 | 247,317 | 462,478 |
1 Some of the data are based on extrapolations.
2 No data are provided on products which were sourced nationally from Denmark, France and Portugal. The quantities specified for these countries were insourced centrally through Germany. Primary and secondary packaging were recorded together as primary packaging for products insourced from Poland.
3 ALDI Belgium and ALDI Luxembourg are legally independent companies (see “About this Report”).
Key figure: Materials used for secondary packaging
Weight of materials used for secondary packaging (in metric tons)1, 2
2014 | 2015 | |||||||
Total | Wood, board, paper | Plastics | Other | Total | Wood, board, paper | Plastics | Other | |
Belgium/Luxembourg3 | 29,312 | 28,560 | 722 | 30 | 17,666 | 17,005 | 661 | – |
Denmark | 756 | 739 | 12 | 5 | 717 | 704 | 10 | 3 |
Germany | 153,942 | 146,200 | 4,786 | 2,956 | 155,262 | 147,096 | 4,755 | 3,411 |
France | 4,116 | 4,038 | 59 | 19 | 3,154 | 3,058 | 86 | 10 |
Netherlands | 27,411 | 26,737 | 610 | 64 | 26,133 | 25,508 | 622 | 3 |
Poland | 267 | 260 | 7 | – | 284 | 280 | 4 | – |
Portugal | 330 | 306 | 24 | – | 447 | 401 | 44 | 2 |
Spain | 9,751 | 8,339 | 993 | 419 | 12,037 | 10,707 | 1,147 | 183 |
ALDI North Group | 225,885 | 215,179 | 7,213 | 3,493 | 215,700 | 204,759 | 7,329 | 3,612 |
1 Some of the data are based on extrapolations.
2 No data are provided on products which were sourced nationally from Denmark, France and Portugal. The quantities specified for these countries were insourced centrally through Germany. Primary and secondary packaging were recorded together as primary packaging for products insourced from Poland.
3 ALDI Belgium and ALDI Luxembourg are legally independent companies (see “About this Report“).
We plan our goods inventories carefully. Nevertheless, we are not always able to sell all food with short use-by dates. Stores located within the catchment area of a food charity donate a lot of their food which can still be consumed but is no longer saleable. In Germany, the proportion of stores which donate food to aid organisations was 98 percent in 2015, and 77 percent in Spain. We also donate food in other countries. In 2016, a pilot project was launched at two regional companies in the Netherlands. There is a statutory obligation to donate in France – ALDI therefore pursues the objective in France of generating no waste by making donations and through recovery. In 2017, we will introduce a guideline on dealing with food that is no longer saleable, with the aim of further expanding the practice of donating and standardising throughout the Group.
Developing more sustainable product packaging with suppliers
We are not simply concerned about transport packaging, but environmentally compatible product packaging for products is also a top priority. That is why we lay down in the buying process that our suppliers should use sustainable materials as far as possible for the packaging of our goods and should not use, for example, PVC and composite materials, if reasonable and possible. Our focus in the case of wood, board and paper is on recycled materials and raw materials harvested from sustainable forestry management. In 2015, 14 percent of our product packaging and around 21 percent of our outer packaging was made using paper constituents certified with a sustainability seal. A planned purchasing policy is scheduled to regulate the issue of packaging from 2017 in order to increase the proportions of recycled and certified materials.
Key figure: FSC® and PEFC-certified primary packaging
Proportion of own-brand products in which primary packaging was manufactured with resources from FSC® or PEFC-certified forests, broken down by certification type (in percent)1, 2, 4
2014 | 2015 | |||||||
Total | of which pure FSC® | of which FSC® mix | of which PEFC | Total | of which pure FSC® | of which FSC® mix | of which PEFC | |
Belgium/Luxembourg5 | 2.6 | – | 100.0 | – | 2.3 | – | 100.0 | – |
Denmark | 19.4 | 8.3 | 83.4 | 8.3 | 18.3 | – | 90.9 | 9.1 |
Germany | 18.4 | 6.8 | 71.2 | 37.9 | 22.5 | 6.1 | 80.7 | 30.9 |
France | 19.5 | – | 100.0 | – | 27.3 | – | 100.0 | – |
Netherlands3 | 52.1 | 10.5 | 80.3 | 9.2 | 51.1 | 11.2 | 83.8 | 5.0 |
Poland | 9.5 | – | 100.0 | – | 8.6 | – | 100.0 | – |
Portugal | 13.5 | – | 100.0 | – | 14.9 | – | 100.0 | 12.5 |
Spain | 7.2 | 16.0 | 78.7 | 5.3 | 9.1 | 17.8 | 75.9 | 6.3 |
ALDI North Group | 11.6 | 7.2 | 77.1 | 26.2 | 13.9 | 6.6 | 80.8 | 21.9 |
1 Some of the data are based on extrapolations.
2 Products which are certified with several seals are listed in the breakdown under all the affected categories, but only as one product in the total number. The total for the breakdowns may therefore be more than 100 percent.
3 The proportions for the Netherlands were calculated on the basis of weight data since more precise values were available for this. On account of the differences in methodology, the values were not included in the calculation of the group-wide value.
4 Without data on products which were insourced nationally from Denmark, France and Portugal. The amounts specified for these countries were insourced centrally through Germany. Primary and secondary packaging were recorded together as primary packaging for products insourced from Poland.
5 ALDI Belgium and ALDI Luxembourg are legally independent companies (see „About this Report“).
Key figure: FSC® and PEFC-certified secondary packaging
Proportion of insourced own-brand products in which secondary packaging was manufactured with resources from FSC® or PEFC-certified forests, broken down by certification type (in percent)1, 2, 4
2014 | 2015 | |||||||
Total | of which pure FSC® | of which FSC® mix | of which PEFC | Total | of which pure FSC® | of which FSC® mix | of which PEFC | |
Belgium/Luxembourg5 | 2.8 | – | 92.9 | 7.1 | 3.3 | – | 94.1 | 5.9 |
Denmark | 13.0 | – | 100.0 | 30.0 | 21.5 | – | 100.0 | 17.6 |
Germany | 26.4 | 4.3 | 98.5 | 12.3 | 29.0 | 3.4 | 99.0 | 14.2 |
France | 12.9 | – | 100.0 | – | 16.0 | – | 100.0 | – |
Netherlands3 | 12.2 | 53.9 | 44.1 | 2.0 | 45.7 | 6.1 | 93.9 | – |
Poland | 14.5 | – | 100.0 | – | 15.0 | – | 100.0 | – |
Portugal | 17.1 | – | 100.0 | 8.3 | 17.4 | – | 100.0 | 8.3 |
Spain | 20.5 | 14.3 | 66.0 | 19.7 | 17.7 | 17.9 | 65.8 | 16.3 |
ALDI North Group | 19.8 | 6.4 | 89.4 | 14.5 | 20.7 | 6.3 | 90.0 | 14.0 |
1 Some of the data are based on extrapolations.
2 Products which are certified with several seals are listed in the breakdown under all the affected categories, but only as one product in the total number. The total for the breakdowns may therefore be more than 100 percent.
3 The proportions for the Netherlands were calculated on the basis of weight data since more precise values were available for this. On account of the differences in methodology, the values were not included in the calculation of the group-wide value.
4 Without data on products which were insourced nationally from Denmark, France and Portugal. The amounts specified for these countries were insourced centrally through Germany. Primary and secondary packaging were recorded together as primary packaging for products insourced from Poland.
5 ALDI Belgium and ALDI Luxembourg are legally independent companies (see „About this Report“).
Key figure: Primary packaging manufactured from recycled materials
The proportion of own-brand products with wood, board or paper in the primary packaging which was manufactured with recycled materials broken down by certification type (in percent)1, 2 ,4
2014 | 2015 | |||||||||
Total | of which Blue Angel | of which FSC® recycled | of which PEFC recycled | of which without labelling | Total | of which Blue Angel | of which FSC® recycled | of which PEFC recycled | of which without labelling | |
Belgium/Luxembourg5 | 0.9 | 25.0 | – | 25.0 | 100.0 | 0.6 | 33.3 | 33.3 | 33.3 | 66.7 |
Denmark | 1.6 | – | – | – | 100.0 | 5.0 | – | 66.7 | – | 33.3 |
Germany | 7.4 | 5.7 | 18.9 | 7.5 | 86.8 | 8.5 | 6.5 | 17.7 | – | 83.9 |
France | 7.3 | – | – | 33.3 | 100.0 | 11.4 | – | 20.0 | 20.0 | 80.0 |
Netherlands3 | 25.7 | 0.7 | – | 1.4 | 100.0 | 20.2 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 99.9 |
Poland | 0.6 | 100.0 | – | – | 100.0 | 4.9 | 12.5 | 87.5 | – | 12.5 |
Portugal | – | – | – | – | – | 5.6 | – | 66.7 | – | 33.3 |
Spain | 8.1 | – | 96.7 | 62.6 | 3.3 | 9.9 | – | 97.5 | 56.5 | 2.5 |
ALDI North Group | 5.6 | 6.2 | 40.8 | 26.9 | 62.4 | 7.0 | 5.6 | 48.6 | 19.5 | 52.2 |
1 Some of the data are based on extrapolations.
2 Products which are certified with several seals are listed in the breakdown under all the affected categories, but only as one product in the total number. The total for the breakdowns may therefore be more than 100 percent.
3 The proportions for the Netherlands were calculated on the basis of weight data since more precise values were available for this. On account of the differences in methodology, the values were not included in the calculation of the group-wide value.
4 Without data on products which were insourced nationally from Denmark, France and Portugal. The amounts specified for these countries were insourced centrally through Germany. Primary and secondary packaging were recorded together as primary packaging for products insourced from Poland.
5 ALDI Belgium and ALDI Luxembourg are legally independent companies (see “About this Report“).
Key figures: Secondary packaging manufactured from recycled materials
The proportion of own-brand products with wood, board or paper in the primary packaging which was manufactured with recycled materials broken down by certification type (in percent)1 ,2, 4
2014 | 2015 | |||||||||
Total | of which Blue Angel | of which FSC® recycled | of which PEFC recycled | of which without labelling | Total | of which Blue Angel | of which FSC® recycled | of which PEFC recycled | of which without labelling | |
Belgium/Luxembourg5 | 7.0 | 2.9 | 45.7 | – | 60.0 | 7.2 | 2.7 | 48.6 | – | 59.5 |
Denmark | 46.8 | – | 44.4 | – | 61.1 | 39.2 | – | 38.7 | – | 67.7 |
Germany | 25.3 | 0.8 | 33.7 | 0.4 | 70.3 | 25.1 | 0.8 | 37.1 | 0.4 | 66.0 |
France | 42.9 | – | 20.0 | – | 83.3 | 42.7 | – | 28.1 | – | 75.0 |
Netherlands3 | 77.7 | 0.2 | 5.3 | – | 94.7 | 24.0 | 0.05 | 47.1 | 0.05 | 52.8 |
Poland | 50.0 | 3.2 | 51.6 | – | 51.6 | 46.7 | 3.6 | 39.3 | – | 71.4 |
Portugal | 45.7 | – | 40.6 | – | 65.6 | 40.6 | – | 39.3 | – | 71.4 |
Spain | 19.4 | – | 77.0 | 23.2 | 19.9 | 17.5 | – | 75.3 | 32.0 | 21.6 |
ALDI North Group | 20.0 | 1.2 | 50.8 | 6.0 | 50.8 | 19.2 | 1.2 | 51.4 | 8.2 | 49.1 |
1 Some of the data are based on extrapolations.
2 Products which are certified with several seals are listed in the breakdown under all the affected categories, but only as one product in the total number. The total for the breakdowns may therefore be more than 100 percent.
3 The proportions for the Netherlands were calculated on the basis of weight data since more precise values were available for this. On account of differences in methodology, the values were not included in the calculation of the group-wide value.
4 Without data on products which were insourced nationally from Denmark, France and Portugal. The amounts specified for these countries were insourced centrally through Germany. Primary and secondary packaging were recorded together as primary packaging for products insourced from Poland.
5 ALDI Belgium and ALDI Luxembourg are legally independent companies (see “About this Report“).
Careful approach to water as a resource
The operation of a store in the ALDI North Group generally requires less water than an average four-person household. In 2015, we used approximately 548,300 cubic metres of water throughout the ALDI North Group, 432,000 cubic metres of this were used in our stores. We use efficient engineering to save water. For example, baking ovens that are self-cleaning without the addition of water are used in most countries. Furthermore, we also use energy-saving cleaning equipment fitted with efficient dispensing technology and biologically degradable cleaning agents in order to reduce wastewater contamination. When we make decisions on landscaping our facilities in Spain, we cultivate our landscaped areas with plants adapted to the climate so that the amount of water required for irrigation purposes is low. We regularly analyse the data at our locations in order to identify starting points for reducing consumption.
Key figure: Water consumption
Wasserverbrauch (in Kubikmeter)1
Der Wasserverbrauch hat sich mit einem Anstieg von sieben Prozent leicht gegenüber 2014 erhöht. Diese Entwicklung ist vor allem auf eine Erhöhung des Verbrauchs in unseren Verkaufsstellen (unter anderem durch Leckagen) sowie den Bezug neuer Standorte – beispielsweise durch die Erweiterung unserer Verwaltungsstandorte in Deutschland – zurückzuführen.
2014 | 2015 | |
Belgien/Luxemburg2 | 51.981 | 48.506 |
Dänemark | 11.747 | 14.228 |
Deutschland | 206.725 | 210.353 |
Frankreich | 124.407 | 135.945 |
Niederlande | 37.465 | 40.860 |
Polen | 9.105 | 13.092 |
Portugal | 20.330 | 19.469 |
Spanien | 51.234 | 65.883 |
Unternehmensgruppe | 512.994 | 548.336 |
1 Die Daten basieren zum Teil auf Schätzungen und Hochrechnungen.
2 ALDI Belgien und ALDI Luxemburg sind rechtlich selbstständige Gesellschaften (siehe „Über diesen Bericht“).