Kesko.fi Responsibility

10,000 roses handed out at Kesko's Mother's Day event

Wed, 16 May 2012 08:58:37 GMT

Kesko's President and CEO Matti Halmesmäki spoke to mothers at the Mother's Day event.
"This is a festive day for the whole family. The daily life of families with children is not, however, all roses. In many cases, they may be burdened by financial concerns. Our basis of our future is families with children, and this is something decision-makers should remember," said Halmesmäki.

The Mother's Day event was organised at the 'Expectation' sculpture in Kaivopuisto Park in Helsinki.

Fairtrade products improve living conditions in developing countries

The greeting of Fairtrade Finland was presented by Executive Director Janne Sivonen. Fairtrade products, such as roses, improve the living conditions of farmers and workers of large farms as well as the state of the environment. In three successive years, Kenyan women have made 300,000 bracelets, which have been included within the covers of Pirkka Fairtrade flower bunches.
"In developing countries, mothers play a key role in the battle against poverty. By making bracelets, Kenyan women earn additional income to buy, for example, school uniforms for their children."

Spring songs, and roses for mothers and grandmothers

At the occasion, YL Male Voice Choir performed spring songs and the Finlandia Hymn. The event ended with a singalong of the classic Suvivirsi. And the culmination was the distribution of Pirkka Fairtrade roses to mothers and grandmothers.

The roses were handed by President and CEO Matti Halmesmäki, Fairtrade Finland's Executive Director Janne Sivonen and boys from two soccer clubs: Laajasalon Palloseura and Laajasalon HJK '00.

The 'Expectation' sculpture, completed for the Mother's Day 2010, was made by sculptor Pekka Jylhä.
"The sea plays an important role in the sculpture: a mother looks towards the sea, the future, with a positive mind," Jylhä describes the work of art.
"It's great that this kind of event is organised around the sculpture."

Eeva-Riitta (left picture) and Hanna, aged three and a half, had come to the Mother's Day event to listen to the songs. Niko, the son of the family, was one of the players of Laajasalon HJK, who handed out the roses.
"The boys are enthusiastic about their role and there is plenty to do in the park for the youngest family members, too," said Eeva-Riitta.

Severi and Toini Vannas (right picture) had also come to the event to listen to the songs.

Kesko Joins the Climate Partners Network

Fri, 04 May 2012 13:36:28 GMT

The objective of Climate Partners is to bring the pioneers of climate efforts to the same table and find new ways and processes to help curb climate change.

In addition to Kesko, the Climate Partners network was joined by Alma Media, Forum Virium, Elisa, the Helsinki Region Chamber of Commerce, Tapiola Real Estate, Lassila & Tikanoja, Lemminkäinen, Logica, Martela, NCC, Nordea, Paulig, Siemens, Skanska, Sponda, Stockmann, VR Group, VVO, and YIT. In addition to companies, the network hopes to enroll colleges and universities, organizations and other bodies as supporting members.

Climate Commitments Show Objectives and Actions

In their climate commitments, the companies outlined reducing carbon dioxide emissions, advancing energy efficiency, and developing new greenhouse gas-reducing services as some of their main goals.

Kesko’s commitment includes the objectives we are committed to in our responsibility efforts:

We will take part in curbing the advancement of climate change by saving energy and increasing waste recycling and recovery.
We also want to help our partners and customers act to help the environment.
Our responsibility programme sets objectives for climate change curbing, energy efficiency, transportation, and recycling and materials efficiency, among other things.
In the trading sector energy-efficiency agreement, we are committed to reducing our energy consumption through various energy-saving measures by 65GWh by the end of 2016. The amount corresponds to the annual energy consumption of over 3,200 one-family houses.
The biggest savings are achieved in stores by adding lids to freezers, recovering condensation heat from the cooling system, using LEDs in illuminated signs, and using adjustable and directional lighting.

Joint Effort in Curbing Climate Change

The climate commitments were signed jointly by the companies and the Mayor of Helsinki, Jussi Pajunen. Kesko was represented by Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications and Responsibility, Merja Haverinen.

- We were happy to join the climate partnership offered by the City of Helsinki. It opens up a new kind of cooperation for our responsibility efforts to curb climate change, says Merja Haverinen.

For more information, see www.ilmastokumppanit.fi.

Kesko's 2011 Corporate Responsibility Report is published

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 09:51:42 GMT

The theme sections of the report discuss impact on society, wellbeing at work, work towards mitigating climate change, responsible purchasing and sales, and healthiness. The report is divided into four sections: introduction, themes, management and GRI indicators.

The trading sector employs young people

Every year, Kesko and K-retailers employ thousands of summer employees and job trainees. Most trainee and summer jobs are provided by K-stores.

In 2011, 28% of the Kesko personnel in Finland were younger than 26 years.

Management model for wellbeing at work

In early 2011, a management model for wellbeing at work was adopted in all of Kesko's companies and operating countries. Of the 1,200 supervisors in Finland, 500 participated in trainings providing information on uniform practices and initiatives concerning wellbeing at work.

Excellent results from improving energy efficiency of buildings

New stores feature solutions that reduce the consumption of materials and energy during the lifecycles of properties. In 2011, special attention in building contracting was paid to the heat insulation capacity of the outer shell of the building and to improving its insulation.

A ground heating system was adopted at the Veturi shopping centre, opening in Kouvola in autumn 2012, already at the construction stage. The shopping centre only needs district heat in very low sub-zero temperatures.

Increasingly small amounts of waste go to landfills

The recovery rate of waste from Kesko Food's warehouse and terminal operations improved to nearly 95% in 2011. At the end of 2011, the recovery rates of K-food stores complying with the new waste management system were around 90%. The recovery rate of the new logistics centre for home and speciality goods is over 99%.

Kesko's 12th Corporate Responsibility Report has been published in Finnish and English and it can be downloaded at www.kesko.fi/responsibility . A printed copy can be ordered at www.kesko.fi/media.

In November 2011, Kesko's 2010 Report was chosen as Finland's best corporate responsibility report in the 'Responsibility Reporting' contest. Kesko has been included eight times on 'The Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World' list.

Kesko was ranked among the World's Most Ethical Companies

Fri, 16 Mar 2012 09:03:03 GMT

"A strong ethical foundation is a competitive advantage, and Kesko recognises the important role corporate responsibility plays in improving its bottom line," said Alex Bingham, Executive Director of the Ethisphere Institute. "As more and more organisations strive for this honour each year, Kesko's inclusion as a World's Most Ethical Company for 2012 demonstrates its industry-leading commitment to ethics and dedication to integrity."

When naming the companies, Ethisphere evaluated, among other things, the company's code of ethics, number of innovations, sustainable business practices and responsibility of operations. For listing purposes, Ethisphere's experts reviewed hundreds of companies, representing more than one hundred countries and over 35 industries. A total of 145 companies, the best in their industries, were included in the list.

Kesko has received several recognitions for its responsibility work in Finland and internationally. Kesko has been included in the Dow Jones sustainability indexes for nine years in succession. Kesko has been selected among 'the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World' for eight times (www.global100.org ). In February 2012, Kesko was awarded by World Finance Magazine for 'the Best Corporate Governance in Finland' in terms of corporate governance development and reporting for the second time in succession. In 2011, Kesko was awarded as the best in Finland in responsibility reporting (www.fibsry.fi) .

Further information on the methodology and the 2012 World's Most Ethical Companies list at www.ethisphere.com/wme .

Follow the product's path

Tue, 28 Feb 2012 16:04:42 GMT

We want our customers to know more about products' paths. Do click on the Product's path map and follow the path of, let's say, Pirkka Fairtrade roses from Kenya to Finland.

Click on the image to access the map.

Majority of Kesko's purchases are made from Finland

In 2010, Kesko's purchases from suppliers in Finland were valued at €5,174 million and those from suppliers in other countries at €2,311 million. Kesko encourages K-food retailers to complement their selections with local purchases. Retailers' direct purchases from the Finnish regions were valued at a total of €537 million in 2010.

The product's path also includes examples of Finnish local food. You can watch a video where Specialist Baker Martti Hampinen tells us about top Finnish design, hand crimped Karelian pasties. See and hear about the manufacturer of Pirkka Luomu organic yoghurts, a small dairy located in Juva, amidst the beautiful Finnish lake scenery.

So, choose a product and follow its path from a farm or factory to a store!

Kesko recognised for good corporate governance

Mon, 27 Feb 2012 15:51:26 GMT

World Finance awarded the best companies from 53 countries. In addition to Kesko, the awarded companies included Royal Dutch Shell (Netherlands), HSBC (UK) Microsoft (US) and Nestlé (Switzerland).

Kesko is committed to the best practices of good corporate governance: openness and transparency, and the pursuit of the interests of the company and all of its shareholders.

"For Kesko, good corporate governance is a success factor, which creates a strong basis for long-term success in business for the benefit of customers and all shareholders," says the Kesko Group's General Counsel, Vice President Anne Leppälä-Nilsson.

"We want to exceed the level of the regulations binding listed companies and create clear, transparent decision-making structures and systems, providing open and up-to-date information about them to the market and other stakeholders."

Kesko has received several recognitions for responsibility work in Finland and internationally. Kesko has, for example, been included on 'the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World' list for eight times in succession (www.global100.org). Last year Kesko was awarded for the best responsibility reporting in Finland (www.fibsry.fi).

Read more about Kesko's corporate governance.

Anna Simula and Sofia Ziessler: Cross sectional responsibility

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 13:14:28 GMT

Students would like to see companies taking responsibility for the social and ecological impacts of their operations even if pure profit maximisation did not require it. This means that responsibility is not limited to reporting by the communicati...

Kesko on 'The Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World' list

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 12:37:00 GMT

For the list, companies were assessed on 11 sustainable performance indicators in all areas of responsibility: economic, social and environmental responsibility. Environmental indicators were used to study the consumption of energy and water, waste produced and carbon dioxide emissions compared with revenue generated. Indicators affecting the assessment of social responsibility were the percentages of men and women on the Board of Directors, bases of pay and remuneration, and employee turnover.

"We are pleased and proud of our ranking, because the competition in sustainability and responsibility is becoming more intense year by year and the position as one of the most sustainable corporations in the world cannot be taken for granted. Customers increasingly value responsible companies, their products and services," says Matti Halmesmäki, Kesko's President and CEO.

'The Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World' list is prepared by Corporate Knights, the company which acts in cooperation with Legg Mason's Global Currents Investment Management and Phoenix Global Advisors LLC.

The list is available at www.global100.org.

Kesko is also included in the SAM Sustainability Yearbook

Kesko has also been selected among sustainability leaders in the Food & Drug Retailers sector in the 2012 Sustainability Yearbook.

SAM (Sustainable Asset Management) carries out an annual assessment of sustainability practices of more than 2,000 companies and has published the Sustainability Yearbook for 13 consecutive years. Only the top 15% of the companies in the world qualify in each sector for inclusion in the Sustainability Yearbook on the basis of the assessment made by SAM.

The Sustainability Yearbook 2012 can be downloaded at www.sam-group.com/yearbook.

Galina Kallio: Responsibility is full of value choices

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 10:49:54 GMT

Food has recently been a popular topic both in public and by the sandpit.

Kodin Ykkönen in Raisio to be the first Nordic passive commercial building

Wed, 21 Dec 2011 08:54:19 GMT

Anttila Oy has signed a lease with Virtanen Yhtiöt for a new 8,500 m² Kodin Ykkönen department store to be built in Raisio. The department store will be built in Kuninkoja, Raisio and it will be the first passive commercial building in Finland.

The building will use a minimum of energy and leverage renewable energy. The building method has been used for one-family houses, and adopted for a commercial building, it will generate electricity savings corresponding to the electricity consumption of as many as 40 one-family houses heated with electricity.

– We want to find a building method for commercial buildings which is as responsible as possible. It involves several subcontractors who get the opportunity to implement completely new kinds of environmentally friendly solutions in a commercial building. Responsibility will also be highlighted in the services and products offered by the Kodin Ykkönen store in Raisio. Consumers are increasingly interested in products which help reduce the consumption of electricity, for example, says Matti Pohjola, Sales Director of Kodin Ykkönen.

Energy efficiency in new ways

The building project is part of the Sustainable Community Technology programme of Tekes – the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation. VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland and Kimmo Lylykangas Architects, also participating in the project, aim to set target levels for the energy consumption of a passive commercial building.

– Some 70% of the energy consumption of residential housing is used for the heating of premises and household water, and 30% is attributable to real estate and household electricity. In a typical commercial building, the relation is the other way round, in other words, heating accounts for some 25% of total energy consumption and electricity for 75%, says Riikka Holopainen, Senior Research Scientist of VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland.

Energy efficiency in Kodin Ykkönen in Raisio will be gained by the recovery of heat from air conditioning, air tight structures and lighting solutions taking customer movements into account. These functions are controlled by highly sophisticated real estate automation systems.

Eco-efficient operations will enable the heating energy consumption of the department store to be reduced by some 60% and electricity consumption by some 50% compared to a traditional department store. In addition, the department store will have a photovoltaic solar energy system. There are only a few similar commercial buildings in Europe.

Nils-Gustav Höglund: Are culinary competitions worth it?

Tue, 13 Dec 2011 13:51:32 GMT

Everybody doesn't know yet that besides national sports teams, Finland has also a national culinary team - "Culinary Lions" as the team of the eager and skilled young chefs is also called.

K-market Jounin Kauppa receives the 2011 Renewable Energy Action of the Year award

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 15:29:06 GMT

K-market Jounin Kauppa won the 2011 Renewable Energy Action of the Year award.
The K-market retailer is Sampo Kaulanen.

This was the second year for granting the Renewable Energy Action of the Year awards. K-market Jounin Kauppa of Äkäslompolo was awarded in the renewable energy users category. In the same category, the block of eco houses in Kempele received an honorary mention. Savosolar of Mikkeli was awarded in the renewable energy business and promotion category. The prizes were presented by Esa Härmälä, Director-General of the Energy Department at the Ministry of Employment and the Economy at Motiva's Renewable Energy Seminar on 10 November.

The jury consisted of representatives of Motiva, Sitra the Finnish Innovation Fund, the Confederation of Finnish Industries EK, Finpro and the Teknikka&Talous magazine.

K-market Jounin Kauppa made investments and cut energy costs

Jounin Kauppa, located in Äkäslompolo, is the largest village store in Lapland. Its nearly 6,000 sqm of business premises, completed in 2008, include one of Finland's most advanced heating and cooling solutions making use of renewable energy sources and condensation heat from refrigeration equipment. The store has also an energy efficient refrigeration system which uses carbon dioxide as coolant.

The design wanted to reduce emissions accelerating climate change and save increasingly high energy costs. Heating and cooling energy is drawn from soil and air and from the condensation heat of the store's refrigeration equipment. The jury praised the solutions for their duplicability and efficiency. As the concept is more widely adopted, energy consumption and greenhouse emissions can be significantly reduced.

The energy saving solutions implemented in K-market Jounin Kauppa are also innovative. The system is a sound combination of energy efficiency and the use of renewable energy. Moreover, the significant investment reflects the company's strong commitment. Proof of which is K-retailer Sampo Kaulanen's enthusiasm.

- The investment is based on my personal interest in the use of renewable energy. If only we could encourage more companies to join the effort, it would benefit all. New jobs could be offered, energy price would decrease, and most importantly, the environment could be preserved, says Kaulanen.

The energy system designer Väinö Jaako is pleased with the result. The investment repays itself sooner than calculated, which will certainly encourage others.

The award adds weight to renewable energy

The jury members are Karoliina Auvinen, Senior Lead, Ecoefficiency of Sitra, Specialist Jari Huovinen of EK, Santtu Hulkkonen, Director, Environment of Finpro and Managing Editor Kimmo Lundén of the Tekniikka & Talous magazine. Motiva's representatives in the jury are Consultant Olli Laitinen and Communications Manager Iiris Lappalainen.

- By rewarding pioneers in the use of renewable energy we want to increase companies' and citizens' interest in available solutions and good practices, says Olli Laitinen.

- The main emphasis in the evaluation was placed on the efficiency of renewable energy use, commitment to the effort and innovativeness.

Anttila's new logistics centre environmentally certified

Fri, 18 Nov 2011 15:37:59 GMT

This logistics centre of Anttila is one of the most modern in Europe. Applying the latest warehousing technology it will significantly improve logistics efficiency while taking the environment into account, proof of which is the ISO 14001 environmental certificate.

The heating energy of the logistics centre comes from Kerava Energy's nearby bio energy plant, in which 60% of the fuel is wood and 40% peat. The consumption of heating energy is about one third compared with the old warehouse in Hämeenkylä, Vantaa.

The Hämeenkylä warehouse directed some 97% of the waste generated to recovery. In the new logistics centre, the recovery rate will be further improved by using recyclable platforms.

A comprehensive management of environmental matters enables the harmful environmental impact of Anttila's operations to be continuously reduced. At the same time, we will be better able to meet the requirements of tightening environmental laws (incl. packagings, waste management, producer responsibility) and to quickly respond to customers' increasing interest in environmental matters.

Anttila Oy is the first Finnish retail company to be awarded the ISO 14001 certificate for a systematic and target oriented management of environmental matters as early as in 2002. Environmental systems were introduced in early 2001 and all of Anttila Oy's operations have been certified since 2006.

The more the better - K-food stores participate in UNICEF's vaccine campaign

Fri, 18 Nov 2011 13:57:45 GMT

In Finland, the campaign is again run nation-wide by Procter & Gamble in November-December. K-food stores have joined the campaign, in addition to which they will donate additional vaccines.

For any Pampers, Ariel or Fairy product purchased from a K-food store in November-December, the K-food store will donate two vaccines to the campaign. The vaccines are donated, whether or not the product wears a label with a UNICEF logo. When you buy these campaign products from a K-store you will donate even more.

Kesko awarded for the best reporting on corporate responsibility in Finland

Thu, 10 Nov 2011 15:34:07 GMT

Receiving the award at the Sanoma House Media Piazza in Helsinki were (from left) Toni Pelin, Keslog's Environmental and Safety Manager; Satu Kuoppamäki, Kesko's Corporate Responsibility Advisor; Jari Suuronen, Kesko Food's Maintenance Manager; Helena Frilander, Kesko's CR Manager; Merja Haverinen, Senior Vice President for Corporate Communications and Responsibility; Pirjo Nieminen, Communications Officer and Jesse Mether, Rautakesko's Sustainability Manager. Photo: Julius Konttinen.

Since the first Corporate Responsibility Report Competition in 1996, Kesko has placed among the best for 12 times. The competition is organised by Aalto University School of Economics, the Confederation of Finnish Industries EK, Finnish Business & Society, the Finnish Institute of Authorised Public Accountants, the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions (SAK), the Ministry of Employment and the Economy, the Association for Environmental Management, and the Ministry of the Environment. President of the Republic Tarja Halonen was the patron of this year's competition. The awards of the competition were presented by Erkki Virtanen, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Employment and the Economy, at the Sanoma House Media Piazza in Helsinki, on 10 November.

According to the jury, Kesko's report covers particularly well the five key themes in its operations: impact on society, wellbeing at work, energy solutions, responsible purchasing and sales and healthiness.

"We are especially happy and proud about this award, because the level of corporate responsibility reporting is higher year after year and success in the competition is not self-evident. Responsibility is visible to K-store customers on every shopping visit and we are making efforts so that customers can rely on the fact that their responsible choices start from entering the store. The versatility of this work is presented annually in our Corporate Responsibility Report", says Matti Halmesmäki, Kesko's President and CEO.

Readers' voice was heard in the competition

There was 149 entries in the Corporate Responsibility Competition of which 11 reports made it to the final evaluation.

For the first time in the competition, the favourites of analysts, non-governmental organisations, media, and students, in other words, the key readers of corporate responsibility reports, were awarded.

"Kesko's report is a balanced package of easily accessible practical information and heavy data, complemented with numerous case examples of corporate responsibility in practice. The management's vision and commitment have a strong presence in the report", said the students.

Kesko was the sector's best in the Nordic climate index

Fri, 28 Oct 2011 12:52:21 GMT

The Nordic Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index is based on responses to the questionnaire which focused on greenhouse gas emissions, emissions reduction targets, and risks and opportunities associated with climate change. Companies are scored on their climate change disclosure; high scores indicate good internal data management and understanding of climate change related issues affecting the company.

Kesko was given 80 performance points, which was the highest in the Consumer Staples sector. The average of all Nordic 260 responses was 64 points.

Energy efficiency is one of the key objectives in Kesko's responsibility programme

Through its own operations, Kesko actively participates in curbing the progress of climate change. LED technology is used in the illuminated signs of all new K-food, K-rauta, Rautia, Anttila and car stores. New K-food stores' refrigeration equipment is supplied with lids and doors. Thanks to the recovery of condensation heat, district heat is only needed for K-food stores' heating in very low sub-zero temperatures.

By participating in the trading sector energy-efficiency agreement, Kesko committed to saving 65 GWh of energy by the end of 2016, which corresponds to the annual energy consumption of about 2,600 one-family houses. Kesko's energy savings are ahead of objectives: in 2008-2010 Kesko has saved 34 GWh of energy, which accounts for more than half of the total objective.

Nordic Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index comprises 26 companies and the index is a key component of the Carbon Disclosure Project's (CDP) annual Nordic 260 report. The report can be downloaded at www.cdproject.net.

K-food stores and Ben & Jerry’s contribute to WWF's Baltic Sea project

Tue, 18 Oct 2011 14:47:32 GMT

Continuing their charitable work Ben & Jerry’s are now contributing to the cleaning of the Baltic Sea with their Project Baltic Sea. The project raises funds for Operation Mermaid, which is part of WWF's international programme for protecting the Baltic Sea.

New 'Nordic Water Peace' sold only in the Nordic countries

In honour of Ben & Jerry’s Baltic Sea Project, they have launched their first local ice-cream flavour, which is available only in the Nordic countries. The chocolaty sweet new flavour "Nordic Water Peace" is the key product in the promotion of the Project Baltic Sea. The new ice-cream flavour is produced in a climate-neutral way like all of Ben & Jerry's ice-creams. In addition, it has a Fairtrade certificate.

“Man needs the sea. The sea needs man”

Operation Mermaid is aimed to save the Baltic Sea by preventing euthropication, improving maritime safety, promoting sustainable fishing, as well as protecting the endangered Baltic Sea species and archipelago. WWF has also trained voluntary people for oil spill recovery and established wetlands around the Baltic Sea. The slogan of Operation Mermaid speaks to us all: “Man needs the sea. The sea needs man”.

Read more about the state of the Baltic Sea on the website of The Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE) at: http://www.ymparisto.fi/itameri

For the love of Finnish women

Mon, 10 Oct 2011 13:38:28 GMT

K-food stores' campaign products include beautiful Pirkka Pink Ribbon roses in a pink campaign wrapping. For every bunch sold, K-food retailers donate 10 cents to the Pink Ribbon fund.

The Pink Ribbon campaign organised in Finland is based on the international Pink Ribbon campaign raising funds for breast cancer research. At national level, the campaign implementation is coordinated by local cancer organisations.

October was chosen as breast cancer awareness month when pink silk ribbons, the campaign symbols, can be seen throughout the world. In Finland, the campaign has been run since 2003. The campaign slogan is "For the love of Finnish women".

Kesko's energy savings ahead of challenging targets

Wed, 05 Oct 2011 13:36:39 GMT

- Energy saving is one of the key means by which climate change can be mitigated. Kesko is one of the forerunners in energy saving. The rapid progress in the achievement of the targets proves that the measures are right and efficient, says Kesko's President and CEO Matti Halmesmäki.

Savings through lighting

LED technology is used in the illuminated signs of all new K-food stores, K-rauta, Rautia, Anttila and car stores. The resulting savings compared with traditional neon and fluorescent tube solutions are 60-70%. The general lighting of a store, implemented in K-supermarket Torpparinmäki, consumes over 35% less energy than the generally used energy efficient fluorescent tube lighting. Adjustable and targeted store lighting systems in the Anttila and Kodin Ykkönen stores save as much as half of conventional store lighting systems.

More than 4.3 kilometres of chest freezers with lids

All new K-food stores are fitted with freezer equipment with lids and doors. In terms of kilometres, the total length of lids and doors on K-food stores' freezer equipment exceed 4.3 kilometres. Chest freezers with lids save 30-40% of energy compared with those without lids. Annual energy savings achieved by chest freezer lids amount to some 13 GWh, which corresponds to the annual electricity consumption of nearly 600 one-family houses. Another pilot is being tested in K-food stores as doors are added to their existing juice and dairy cabins. The annual saving in electric energy achieved by this is about 30% compared to not having doors on the cabins.

Thanks to the recovery of condensation heat, K-food stores need district heat only in very low sub-zero temperatures. About half of new K-food stores use carbon dioxide recovered from industrial processes as a coolant in their refrigeration equipment.

Energy efficient building

Kesko's store site building uses solutions which reduce the material and energy consumption of properties during their entire life cycles. Rautakesko and Ruukki jointly developed an energy efficient store concept with results clearly exceeding the required level, which is mainly attributable to tightness and efficient heat recovery. The consumption of heat energy in Anttila's new logistics centre in Kerava is only one third of the heat energy consumption of the old warehouse in Hämeenkylä, Vantaa.

Real estate managers advise in energy saving

Kesko's 40 real estate managers regularly visit all of the K-Group stores giving advice on how to reduce energy consumption. More savings are also generated with the help of accurate measuring devices, timely maintenance of refrigeration equipment and temperature adjustments.

Kesko participates in the Energy Saving Week organised by Motiva taking place from 10th to16th October 2011.

Read more at:
www.energiatehokkuussopimukset.fi

K-food stores aim to double the Pirkka organic product selection

Mon, 03 Oct 2011 11:51:17 GMT

– We have taken into account the keen demand for good quality Pirkka organic products offered at permanently affordable prices and have decided to double the number of organic products in the range, says Kesko Food's Juha Andelin, responsible for the Pirkka range.

The newest Pirkka organic products to join the range are the first organic ready-to-eat meals, which were introduced in K-food stores in late September. They are made of carefully selected organic ingredients and they do not contain preservatives or additives.

The sales performance of K-food stores' organic products has been improving for some time, especially this year. Organic products account for a bigger share of the Pirkka range sales than the sales of organic products of all products on average. Kesko Food is one of the founder members of Pro Luomu ry, a registered association for organic sector operators, founded in March 2011.

K-food stores offer organic chicken on request by customers

New products interesting for customers are sought to be included in K-food stores' organic offer. A quantity of frozen organic chicken, much in demand by customers, will be available in K-citymarkets in the Greater Helsinki area during the Organic Week, and nationwide in some K-citymarkets, K-supermarkets and K-markets in late October. Customers may check the supply with their K-food retailers.

The total number of organic products offered by stores depends on the demand, season and store size, among other things.