Tokmanni adopts ambitious climate targets approved by the Science Based Targets initiative – “Tokmanni is strongly involved in combatting climate change”

Tokmanni     Press release     20 August 2020 at 3:10 p.m.

Tokmanni, the largest general discount retailer in Finland, has become a global pioneer by adopting climate targets that are officially approved by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). With these targets, which are based on the Paris Agreement, Tokmanni will support the Business Ambition for 1.5 °C campaign and commit to do its part to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius. The commitment is significant, as the 1.5 °C target is the most ambitious in the Science Based Targets initiative.

Tokmanni commits to reduce absolute scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions 70% by 2025 from a 2015 base year. Tokmanni commits that 80% of its suppliers by spend covering purchased Goods and Services, will have science-based targets by 2025.

The international Science Based Targets initiative encourages companies to carry out their climate actions in accordance with the emissions reduction targets set out in the Paris Agreement. In Tokmanni’s case, the initiative confirms that the general discount retailer’s emissions reduction targets are aligned with climate research and form a sufficient contribution towards limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

“Companies have a very substantial opportunity to influence global warming and a responsibility to mitigate it. We must all do our fair share, and do it promptly. By committing to ambitious, science-based climate targets, we are demonstrating that Finland’s largest general discount retailer Tokmanni is strongly involved in combatting climate change,” says Mika Rautiainen, CEO of Tokmanni.

Tokmanni is one of the ambitious pioneers in retailing

Science-based climate targets have so far been adopted by approximately 950 companies across the globe, and around 435 companies have had their targets approved by the Science Based Targets initiative. Of the latter, around 165 companies have set their approved emissions targets to a level aligned with the 1.5 °C limit. Tokmanni is one of the first 16 companies in the global retail sector to adopt approved climate targets that call for limiting the rise in global temperature to a maximum of 1.5 °C. In the Nordics, only two other retailers have received a similar approval for their climate targets. This means that with its ambitious emissions reduction targets Tokmanni is one of the pioneers in global climate action.

“We are obviously very pleased to have Tokmanni’s climate targets approved by the renowned Science Based Targets initiative. The initiative guides us in cutting our greenhouse gas emissions and ensures that our climate actions are aligned with the global warming target of 1.5 degrees Celsius which is recorded in the Paris Agreement,” says Emilia Koski, Tokmanni’s Head of Corporate Responsibility.

Tokmanni is also participating in other international initiatives. For instance, it reports on its emissions annually to the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), which evaluates the climate actions of various companies.

“At the same time, we are constantly offering our customers an increasingly wider array of commercially significant private label products that promote sustainability. We are doing this by increasing the number of various certificates and products with sustainability labels. For example, we are increasingly using certified high-risk raw materials, the most important of which are cotton, wood and palm oil. All of these are directly linked to climate change, and their certification promotes more sustainable farming methods,” Koski adds.

A variety of means to reduce emissions

The majority of emissions arising from Tokmanni’s own activities are caused by heating and electricity consumption at its properties as well as by the transportation of goods. A lot of work is already being done at Tokmanni to reduce emissions, and Tokmanni estimates that it can meet the science-based targets by increasing the use of renewable energy and improving energy efficiency and the recycling rate, as well as by working with suppliers to ensure they set ambitious emissions targets for their own operations.“It is also important to curb the emissions caused by transportation. Tokmanni has concentrated its key transportation services with around ten long-term partners. It aims to reduce emissions and environmental impacts in cooperation with these partners by, for example, optimising routes and load capacity and modernising fleets,” Koski says.
 

Science Based Targets initiative in brief

• The aim of the Science Based Targets (SBT) organisation is that companies’ climate targets are based on science and create significant reductions in emissions. Members of the organisation include WWF, UN Global Compact, CDP, and World Resources Institute. The Science Based Targets organisation scientifically and independently assesses and approves companies’ targets.

• The initiative encourages companies to commit to science-based climate targets. Targets adopted by companies to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are considered “science-based” if they are in line with what the latest climate science says is necessary to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement. The goal of the Paris Agreement, which was adopted in 2015, is to limit global warming to well below 2 °C above pre-industrial levels and pursue efforts to limit warming to 1.5 °C.

More information on Tokmanni’s responsibility work can be found on the company's website at ir.tokmanni.fi/en/sustainability

TOKMANNI


For further information, please contact:


Emilia Koski
Head of Corporate Responsibility

Tel. +358 40 132 6847
emilia.koski(at)tokmanni.fi


Maarit Mikkonen
Head of IR and Communications

Tel. +358 40 562 2282
maarit.mikkonen(at)tokmanni.fi


Tokmanni is Finland’s leading general discount retailer. Some 3,700 Tokmanni employees make customers’ everyday life and special occasions easier by offering a versatile and up-to-date assortment of Finnish and international brand-name products and other high-quality products at prices that are always affordable. With nearly 200 stores around Finland and an online store, Tokmanni is always close to its customers. Tokmanni’s revenue in 2019 amounted to EUR 944.3 million. Tokmanni’s shares are listed on Nasdaq Helsinki.