Hej Coffee
assessed
Hej Coffee
assessed
assessed
Foodsteps Methodology
The Foodsteps carbon label helps you understand the impact of your food choices.
In the same way that there is guidance for how many calories, salt and fat we should eat in a day, the same has been calculated for carbon. This carbon budget is measured in kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalent per kilo (kg CO2e/kg) or more simply, carbon intensity. The Foodsteps rating system is based on this carbon budget and we've outlined below how the A to E ratings can support more sustainable diet choices.
These rating boundaries are set within the context of the commitment to meet the Paris Agreement pledge - keeping global warming to well below 2°C, aiming for 1.5°C. It includes an A-E Carbon Rating, where A is “Very Low” and E is “Very High.
Eating A-rated items will help you to stay within the EAT-Lancet 2050 global carbon budget for food, established in 2019 to help achieve healthy diets and sustainable food production.
Methodology
Foodsteps conducted a life cycle assessment for Hej Coffee in September 2024. The products under assessment were 1kg of roasted Hermosa coffee beans and a single brewed espresso made from Hermosa coffee beans.
The assessment followed the Greenhouse Gas Protocol Product Life Cycle Accounting and Reporting Standard and aligned to the principles and framework of ISO 14040.
Our assessment found that Hej Coffee roasted Hermosa coffee beans had a cradle-to-processing gate carbon intensity of 0.784 kgCO2e / kg and a cradle-to-grave carbon intensity of 0.028 kgCO2e / espresso.
For reference, the UK average cradle-to-processing gate impact of coffee beans on the Foodsteps Platform is 15.49 kgCO2e/kg and the UK average cradle-to-grave impact of a single brewed espresso is 0.32 kgCO2e / espresso. These values are provided as an indicative reference and cannot be viewed as a direct comparison to Hej Coffee's footprint due to the potential methodological differences between the calculation of both values.
The key drivers of Hej Coffee’s low footprint are primarily the zero land use change emissions resulting from the farm stage due to the age* of the farm in Costa Rica the beans are sourced from. Additionally, Hej Coffee uses renewable energy at their roastery and an innovative circular packaging solution when delivering the coffee beans to retailers.
*Land use change emissions tend to be calculated over a 20-year period
Who are Foodsteps?
Foodsteps is a specialised food sustainability platform, enabling businesses to reduce the costs and risks of their Net Zero transition, and improve sales as a result. Our platform provides instant access to industry-leading data and insights that food services companies and food manufacturers can trust to accurately measure, reduce and report their environmental impact.
How does Foodsteps measure impact?
Our impact assessments are from cradle-to-grave. This means that they include the impact of all life cycle stages of the process of producing and consuming food - farm, processing, packaging, transport, retail, end-mile, cooking and food waste.
At Foodsteps, we use the best data wherever it is available. When data is not available, we use our own models to estimate the impact of some stages.
What are the different life cycle stages, and what do they mean?
There are many different stages within a food item’s life cycle that must be accounted for as emissions sources. We’ve curated an easy to understand list of key terms below.
Our Data Partners
We work in collaboration with leading organisations to improve and standardise food environmental impact data.
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FAQs
We adhere to the ISO 14040 standard, and are aligned to the GHG Protocol Life Cycle Accounting and Reporting Standard.
Carbon footprint is a measurement of the greenhouse gas emissions released during a product’s life cycle. It is measured in “kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalents (kg CO2e)”, to incorporate the relative impact of all types of greenhouse gases.
Carbon intensity is a measurement of the carbon footprint per kilogram of food (kg CO2e / kg of food). This measurement allows for a fair comparison between products of different serving sizes.
Carbon footprint scores cannot capture the full scope of food sustainability. Other environmental impacts like land use, water use and pollution are also important, as are social impacts such as fair pay and food security.
However, carbon footprint scores can still provide important insights into one of humanity's biggest challenges.
