Policy & Compliance
Sustainability in forwarding – 10 steps from industry experts
BIFA’s Sustainable Logistics Policy Group has produced a simple step-by-step guide to assist Members who want to introduce more sustainable practices and are looking for guidance
commit to change you will need to understand the two core ways to achieve this. 7. Commit to change – Once you have measured your emissions and understand the options and how to get there, you can then build a pathway/strategy. 8. Look into ESG accreditations – You will need to complete most or all the above points if you want to achieve an ESG accreditation score. 9. Build a stakeholder engagement programme – With all the work that you have completed, you will be ready to start presenting this to customers and demonstrating the positive changes you have made. 10.Join working body groups – Although not essential, this step is helpful and enables engagement in peer-to-peer learning and contributes to the wider industry’s progress. The document that contains these steps in more detail can be found in the Sustainable Logistics section of the BIFA website, via the following link: https://bifa.org/information- guidance/technical-information/ sustainable-logistics/ (Please note that this content is only available to BIFA members).
I t is widely acknowledged that approximately 8% of global greenhouse gas (ghg) emissions are produced by freight and logistics, with this fi gure rising to 11% when warehousing and port operations are included. If this continues, freight will become the highest emitting sector by 2050. During late 2023, BIFA established a Sustainable Logistics Policy Group to focus on this important subject and since then the group has held several face-to-face meetings that have all been well attended and have helped to identify and address some of the key challenges that BIFA Members are facing. Working group A small working group was also set up by the policy group to work on some of the most important topics and projects in a timely manner. One of the projects was to produce a simple step-by-step guide to assist Members who want to introduce more sustainable practices and are looking for guidance. The resulting document provides 10 steps for organisations to
consider when embarking on their sustainability journey and provides information under the following headings: 1. Utilise a GLEC reporting tool – The largest and most immediate demand coming from customers is carbon reporting for their shipments. 2. Understand relevant regulations – What regulations will impact your business, and in turn, your customers? 3. Understand and measure Scope 1 & 2 emissions – Most regulations/audits will require Scope 1 and 2 reporting. 4. Understand and measure Scope 3 emissions – In addition to Scope 3 emissions for shipments that can be calculated via the GLEC reporting tool, it is also important to understand other Scope 3 emissions. 5. The difference between net zero and carbon neutral – Once you have measured your emissions you need to know what to do next and what commitment to make. 6. Alternative fuels and transport modes – If you choose to
“ The Sustainable Logistics Policy Group has helped to identify and address some of the key challenges
that BIFA Members are facing
March 2025 | 11
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