Tokmanni celebrates Baltic Sea Day in an important way – A new donation to support the protection of the Baltic Sea, one of the world’s most polluted seas

Tokmanni     Press release     23 August 2022 at 4:05 p.m.

Annamari Arrakoski-Engardt (right), CEO of the John Nurminen Foundation, was presented with a cheque symbolising Tokmanni’s donation of EUR 15,000 for Clean Baltic Sea projects by Sirpa Huuskonen (middle), Vice President, People, Culture and Sustainability at Tokmanni, and Terhi Uusitalo (left), Project Manager, Sustainability at Tokmanni, in Helsinki on Monday 22 August 2022. Photo: John Nurminen Foundation

Tokmanni fosters biodiversity by donating EUR 15,000 through the John Nurminen Foundation for the protection of the Baltic Sea. The donation to support Baltic Sea cleaning projects honours Baltic Sea Day, which is observed on 25 August 2022. The Baltic Sea is one of the world’s most polluted seas. Its environmental load and risks are being reduced through concrete and measurable projects. Including this donation, Tokmanni has supported the work to protect the Baltic Sea with EUR 148,000 during the 2020s. Tokmanni’s goal is to be the most sustainable variety discount retailer and do its part in building a better future.

Tokmanni’s customers and its private label brand Pisara, which focuses on beauty and cleaning products, have again played an important role in accumulating a donation and supporting the John Nurminen Foundation’s work to protect the Baltic Sea. Under the Pisara – Protecting the Baltic Sea cooperation, Tokmanni is donating one cent to the foundation for the protection of the Baltic Sea for each Pisara product it sells between May and August this year.

“At Tokmanni, sustainability stems from all the tangible, everyday actions taken by employees. Supporting the operations of the John Nurminen Foundation is a natural part of Tokmanni’s climate and environmental work. Through our cooperation, we have been able to share information about the current state of the Baltic Sea and the John Nurminen Foundation’s impactful long-term work to reduce the environmental load on the Baltic Sea, as well as the environmental risks to which the sea is exposed,” says Sirpa Huuskonen, Vice President, People, Culture and Sustainability at Tokmanni.

“The donation and the positive feedback we have received show that protecting the wellbeing and invaluable cultural heritage of the Baltic Sea is meaningful for our customers. We are very pleased about this.”

Annamari Arrakoski-Engardt, CEO of the John Nurminen Foundation, is also delighted by Tokmanni’s and its customers’ willingness and efforts to help the Baltic Sea.

“I would like to thank Tokmanni and its customers for their excellent cooperation over the past three years. Through easy everyday actions, Tokmanni’s customers contribute to saving the Baltic Sea.”

Concrete actions to reduce pollution in the Baltic Sea

The Baltic Sea, with which Finns have a close relationship, is one of the world’s most polluted seas. Its most serious environmental problem is eutrophication. This problem is caused by nitrogen and phosphorous emissions, which feed the growth of algae and aquatic plants in the water. The impacts of climate change further accelerate the eutrophication of the sea.

Global warming causes the temperature of seawater to rise, and this boosts the growth of blue-green algae, for example. In addition, many northern species that have adapted to the conditions of the Baltic Sea are threatened.

The projects to save the Baltic Sea supported by Tokmanni improve the state of the Baltic Sea by reducing the environmental load on the sea and the environmental risks to which the sea is exposed. The projects also provide information about the state of the Baltic Sea.

“Our foundation carries out concrete and effective work to improve the state of the Baltic Sea. We need supporters to enable this work. The environmental load on the Baltic Sea can be reduced by removing nutrients from the sea and reducing the amount of nutrients ending up in the sea. Our current projects involve the improvement of the nutrient balance, the development of the transportation and processing of fertilisers, the reduction of nutrient discharges related to biogas production and the mowing of reedbeds,” says Arrakoski-Engardt.

“We are also aiming to increase Finns’ awareness of and commitment to the Baltic Sea. We foster an experiential maritime culture, produce training material related to the Baltic Sea and actively participate in discussion in society.”

Tokmanni takes biodiversity loss seriously

In addition to climate change, the loss of biodiversity has become a significant threat to the environment.

Tokmanni’s most significant impacts on biodiversity and climate arise from the products it sells and their raw materials. In its own operations and value chain, Tokmanni seeks to take into account factors that will allow it to contribute to the preservation of biodiversity and the sustainable use of natural resources. In addition to donations, examples of this include Tokmanni’s guidelines on key raw materials in terms of its product selection: cotton, palm oil, wood and fish. Product certification also supports biodiversity by mitigating the degradation of species and ecosystems, for example.

“We are also part of the amfori BEPI environmental programme that helps to prevent the risk to biodiversity arising in the supply chain. For example, in amfori BEPI, factories assess their water consumption, their emissions into the soil and water and the impact of their land use on biodiversity,” says Terhi Uusitalo, Project Manager, Sustainability at Tokmanni.

The preservation of biodiversity is also supported by Tokmanni’s ambitious climate targets. Tokmanni has committed to limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius in its own operations in accordance with the official climate targets approved by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). In addition, Tokmanni's goal is to be carbon neutral in 2025 with regard to its own operations (i.e., scope 1 and 2 emissions).

“To achieve our ambitious sustainability targets, we need partners like the John Nurminen Foundation. For three decades, the Foundation has worked systematically to save the Baltic Sea and its heritage for future generations. We greatly appreciate the Foundation’s concrete projects to improve the state of the Baltic Sea and to reduce the environmental load on the sea and the environmental risks affecting the sea,” says Uusitalo.


Read more about the Baltic Sea and its protection on the John Nurminen Foundation’s website www.johnnurmisensaatio.fi/en and about Tokmanni’s sustainability work on Tokmanni’s website ir.tokmanni.fi/en/sustainability.


TOKMANNI AND JOHN NURMINEN FOUNDATION


For further information, please contact:


Sirpa Huuskonen
Vice President, People, Culture and Sustainability
Tokmanni

Tel. +358 20 728 6520
sirpa.huuskonen(at)tokmanni.fi


Terhi Uusitalo
Project Manager, Sustainability
Tokmanni

Tel. +358 20 728 7847
terhi.uusitalo(at)tokmanni.fi


Maarit MikkonenHead of IR and Communications 
Tokmanni

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


Johanna Suni
Communications Specialist
John Nurminen Foundation

Tel. +358 40 515 4216
johanna.suni(at)jnfoundation.fi


Calls to a corporate number beginning with +358 20 7 from a landline or a mobile phone are EUR 0.0835 per minute + EUR 0.1669 per minute (incl. VAT 24%). Calls from outside Finland are subject to an international call charge.


John Nurminen Foundation – Saving the Baltic Sea

Founded in 1992, the purpose of the John Nurminen Foundation is to save the Baltic Sea and its heritage for future generations. The Foundation’s projects improve the status of the Baltic Sea by reducing the nutrient load and environmental problems, such as eutrophication and nature loss, faced by the sea. The Foundation’s tasks also include safeguarding, celebrating and communicating the stories and cultural heritage of the Sea. The work is steered by measurable results and impact. The Foundation’s operations are mainly funded by donations and grants. www.johnnurmisensaatio.fi/en


Tokmanni

Tokmanni is Finland’s leading variety discount retailer. Some 4,100 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 around 200 stores around Finland and an online store, Tokmanni is always close to its customers. In 2021, Tokmanni’s revenue was EUR 1,142 million, and its comparable EBIT amounted to EUR 106 million. Tokmanni’s shares are listed on Nasdaq Helsinki.