Lulu Group Taking Several Initiatives To Decarbonise Supply Chain: Dr. Althaf

(MENAFN- The Peninsula) The Peninsula

Doha, Qatar: The Lulu Group is taking several initiatives to decarbonise its local and global supply chain to reduce the Group's carbon footprint by 50 percent before 2030 and to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, Director of Lulu Group International Dr. Mohamed Althaf has said.

Althaf said,“The Lulu Group has done well In terms of energy efficiency, water wastage management and plastic usage reduction. The Group is also the first in Qatar to open a carbon-neutral store. What we think now is that we are taking it to the next level where we think we should start now working with our supply chain to decarbonise.”

He said,“When we talk about our supply chains, we are talking about both local and international supply chains. Internationally, we already have a very advanced level of negotiations with some of our shipping companies to use green fuel and find better tracks to reduce fuel consumption.

“So that is already happening. Our own supply chain institutions now in what we have in Birmingham in the UK, it is already net neutral. In the US, now we are achieving the targets in terms of plastic recycling pallets, using electric vehicles, and doing digital automation.”

In the UK, he said,“We have actually surplus power now. After operating all our facilities and energising all our vehicles, we still have power. So we are moving forward on that side that is happening. But what we think today is that at this point in time, we don't want to have a stage where your net neutrality is going to increase your cost of operation. Because already a lot of people are saying that food is expensive, you know.

“So when we talk to people that, you know, we need to have sustainable transportation solution, they say no, this can add on to your cost, so we need to be very careful about this. Now, we think that the digital transformation of our business is another thing that should be added, and we want to make it, not a separate strategy, our digital transformation should be part of our Climate Action Plan.

“So, we already have somebody appointed as a sustainability officer to look at how the integration can be made possible for both. So one, I think, you know, when we think that if we automate a lot of our process, it can also help us in terms of carbon emissions.”

Talking about the Group's participation in the ongoing Expo Doha 2023, Althaf said,“We are also participating in this expo through our partners. So it is mainly what we are going to do as part of the Italians. We are also talking to the UK once they have their pavilion set, maybe we can also participate with Ecuador.”

For us, he said,“The expo is important not because it is a horticulture. I think we have been arguing that it is a time we want to make our food sustainable. You know that we have been always talking and I think the biggest highlight that we have with this expo is what I always tell people climate change is the biggest threat to food security today.”

Althaf said,“We have a problem today happening in Europe because of the change in climate there is no olive anywhere. We had one disaster in Pakistan in the form of heavy rains that affected the production of rice. A country that is eating rice like Pakistan that is exporting rice suddenly don't have anything and they have become importers.”

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