Cannabis company offsets 25,956 tonnes of emissions to become carbon neutral

Canadian company HEXO has offset 100 percent of its 2020 operational carbon emissions, in addition to the personal emissions of 1,200 employees.

HEXO , one of the largest licensed cannabis companies in Canada is a consumer packaged goods company working in the  sector under different brands, including Up Cannabis, HEXO Plus, Original Stash among others.

It also serves the medical cannabis sector in Canada, Israel and Malta.

The company began a mission to counteract its carbon footprint through a partnership with Offsetters, a Vancouver-based global organisation that supports renewable energy and forest carbon projects.

The firm announced this month that it has achieved its goal to become carbon neutral by offsetting 25,965 tonnes of carbon, of which 19,610 was operational emissions and 6,335 was employee personnel emissions.

To do this, HEXO chose to help reduce old-growth tree harvesting by supporting the Great Bear Forest Carbon Project. This project balances human well-being and ecological integrity through carbon finance. It’s the first carbon project in North America on traditional territory.

They are also supporting a project in Asia and South America.

HEXO and plastic

In addition to offsetting its carbon emissions, HEXO is also supporting Plastic Bank’s ethical recycling eco-systems in coastal communities. They collect and reprocess ocean-bound plastics for re-introduction into the global manufacturing supply chain. This has helped 63,000 kilograms of plastic be recycled. HEXO estimate that by October 2021, they will have supported the collection of an additional 8,000 kg of ocean-bound plastic that would have entered oceans. This is the equivalent of 3.55 million plastic bottles.

The company are planning to monitor and report on their carbon emissions, plastic productions while seeking new opportunities to reduce both.

HEXO Corp CEO and Co-Founder Sébastien St-Louis said: “At the start of the summer, we pledged that HEXO would not only become carbon neutral but that we would also offset the personal carbon emissions generated by every one of our employees. Today we are proud to say we have achieved our goal, setting a new standard in sustainability for our industry.”

“Consumers and investors demand greater environmental and social integrity from companies. We are proud to share our commitment to sustainability and support our consumers’ ability to purchase products that align with their values.”

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