Will fruits labeled with carbon be more expensive?

Do you know what's different about carbon-labeled fruits? Do you also wonder if fruits labeled with carbon will be more expensive?

In recent years, more and more fruits have been added to the carbon label family. In fact, different fruit varieties have different planting methods, and the carbon footprint measurement methods will also be different. There are also many practical considerations to choose what kind of fruit industry to study for carbon labeling.

For example, whether it can play a leading role in green and low-carbon fields, whether it can assume corporate social responsibilities, and participate in global governance to address climate change. Whether it can improve the scientific understanding of green and low-carbon among relevant practitioners and consumers, and how to strengthen and improve the construction of the carbon footprint management system for agricultural products, build a carbon footprint factor database, and improve the construction of the carbon footprint label certification hierarchical management system. Provide reference and reference for establishing a unified and standardized carbon footprint management system in more fields.

With these questions in mind, our reporter interviewed Cheng Kun, associate professor at the School of Resources and Environmental Sciences at Nanjing Agricultural University. Start with the just-released durian carbon footprint certification certificates numbered 001 and 002 to find the answer.

Two durian planting enterprises in Sanya City, Hainan Province have obtained my country's first batch of durian carbon footprint certification certificates.

China Environment News: What are the considerations for choosing the durian industry in Sanya City as a cooperation partner?

Cheng Kun:Sanya's durian industry has developed rapidly in recent years. Cooperating with large-scale durian planting companies to carry out carbon footprint labeling certification can, on the one hand, understand the current carbon emission status of durian planting and provide reference for the development of green and low-carbon technologies; on the other hand, it is also a reflection of the company's social responsibility and participation in global governance to address climate change. It can play a good demonstration and leading role.

At the same time, in the context of dual carbon, it is crucial to enhance public awareness of climate change and promote national participation in green and low-carbon actions. In the past two years, domestic durian has become a high topic. Carbon footprint certification of durian can attract more widespread attention, promote the popularization of scientific knowledge related to carbon neutrality, and advocate the concept of green and low-carbon consumption.

China Environment News: Compared with fruits previously labeled with carbon, durian is bigger. What is the difference in the process of calculating the carbon footprint?

Cheng Kun:Different from other crops, domestic durian has only begun to be planted on a large scale in recent years, and its planting management methods are different from other crops. For example, large-scale durian planting has a large proportion of organic fertilizer application and a high degree of water and fertilizer integration, which are different from other crops when calculating the carbon footprint. In addition, durian trees are evergreen trees that can form vegetation carbon sinks through photosynthesis and should also be included in the carbon footprint.

At present, the carbon footprint is calculated to post the carbon footprint label when durian is on the market, so only part of the life cycle carbon footprint of durian from growth to maturity is calculated. As durian production increases year by year, durian shells will become important agricultural waste, and the treatment of durian shells may also bring greenhouse gas emissions, which can be paid attention to in future research.

China Environment News: Will fruits labeled with carbon be more expensive?

Cheng Kun:At present, there are still few domestic companies participating in carbon footprint labeling certification, and the impact of carbon labeling on product prices is relatively limited.

By posting carbon labels and achieving brand differentiation, the brand image and market competitiveness of products can be enhanced, which may affect product prices.

However, it is actually inappropriate to compare carbon labeling with organic agricultural products and green food. Organic agricultural products and green foods have reached certification standards through specific required management measures, which have an impact on product quality or quality, increase the added value of products, and ultimately affect product prices. Carbon footprints only objectively disclose carbon emissions during the product life cycle. Carbon labeling can help consumers realize the impact of purchase decisions on the environment, which may affect consumer behavior.

Carbon footprint certification is an important manifestation of enterprises 'social responsibility and should not affect commodity prices too much. Through carbon footprint certification, it promotes the green and low-carbon transformation of enterprise production, affects consumers 'consumption concepts, enhances consumers' awareness of climate change, and promotes green and low-carbon development. This is the greatest value of carbon footprint certification.

Of course, producers can take targeted measures to reduce emissions and increase foreign exchange rates based on the carbon footprint calculation results. If these measures meet the requirements of voluntary emission reduction trading, the emission reductions and sinks obtained can participate in voluntary emission reduction trading to obtain additional economic benefits.

China Environment News: How to pass fruit carbon footprint certification to improve the level of green and low-carbon development in related industries and improve the scientific understanding of green and low-carbon among relevant practitioners and consumers?

Cheng Kun:The carbon footprint certification of fruits and even various products will help form a social atmosphere of green and low-carbon transformation at the production and consumption ends.

Through the demonstration of typical cases, combined with relevant training such as green and low-carbon technologies and carbon footprint labeling certification, the green and low-carbon awareness and skills level of relevant practitioners will be improved. More and more products are participating in carbon footprint certification and carbon label posting. Combined with science popularization and guidance from media, Internet and other channels, it will effectively enhance consumers 'scientific understanding of green and low-carbon.

The formation of green and low-carbon consumption concepts at the consumer end will force a green and low-carbon transformation at the production end by affecting purchasing habits. The production side adopts a series of green and low-carbon technologies such as new fertilizer application and agricultural waste resource utilization to improve production efficiency, save costs and increase efficiency, effectively reduce carbon footprints, and enhance the ecological value of products.

Universities, scientific research institutes and enterprises will also be encouraged to develop low-carbon planting and processing technologies through industry-university-research cooperation to promote the development and application of new technologies. In the end, the green and low-carbon development level of the entire industry will be significantly improved.

China Environment News: Through the accumulation of experience in fruit carbon labeling, how to strengthen and improve the construction of the carbon footprint management system for agricultural products, build a carbon footprint factor database, and improve the construction of the carbon footprint labeling certification hierarchical management system?

Cheng Kun:To strengthen and improve the construction of the carbon footprint management system for agricultural products, on the one hand, we can learn from the successful experience of fruit carbon labeling to formulate and improve general standards for carbon footprint accounting of agricultural products and accounting rules for specific products. Clarify accounting boundaries, accounting methods, data quality requirements and traceability requirements to ensure the scientificity and accuracy of accounting results. Give priority to key agricultural products, formulate targeted accounting rules, and gradually expand coverage.

Secondly, an expert working group on agricultural product carbon footprint management can be established to provide technical support for research on carbon footprint management mechanisms and designation of carbon labeling certification management methods. Finally, by promoting the integration of agricultural product carbon footprint labeling and certification into relevant policies, a policy synergy will be formed to promote the carbon footprint of agricultural products.

Although this fruit carbon footprint certification is a useful attempt, emission factors for some products, such as liquid fertilizers and biopesticides, are still relatively lacking, and emission factors based on regional characteristics are even more limited. It is urgent to carry out scientific and technological research on emission factors that are lacking or have limited representativeness in carbon footprint accounting to form an emission factor library with Chinese characteristics. In this process, it is particularly necessary to strengthen data quality control to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the data. At the same time, an emission factor sharing platform can be established to realize real-time update and shared use of emission factors.

By establishing unified certification standards and procedures, we will ensure the fairness, authority and comparability of certification results, and improve the construction of the carbon footprint label certification hierarchical management system. Based on the current carbon footprint of agricultural products and the current low-carbon development level, study the carbon footprint evaluation system and establish a carbon footprint hierarchical management system. Enterprises are encouraged to voluntarily participate in carbon footprint label certification and conduct self-improvement and improvement based on the certification results.

Original question: Will fruits labeled with carbon be more expensive?