Flori Footprint Tool on track for being fully FloriPEFCR-compliant in Q2 2024

The Flori Footprint Tool, developed by Greenhouse Sustainability, is well on its way to implementing the final FloriPEFCR guidelines. Its designer anticipates that it will be fully compliant with the FloriPEFCR by the end of the second quarter.

The Flori Footprint Tool is online software that enables companies across the entire floriculture chain to conduct their own life cycle analysis and create scenarios to reduce their footprint. To calculate the footprint of a floriculture product accurately, inputs from every stage of the supply chain must be considered. The Flori Footprint Tool offers, therefore, each participant in the chain their own platform to assess their individual contribution to the product’s overall impact.

Ongoing FloriPEFCR implementation

Since its launch in 2022, the Flori Footprint Tool has adhered to the draft of FloriPEFCR (Floriculture Product Environmental Footprint Category Rules). The initial version has continuously provided many growers with insights into the impact of their products, helping them report on their footprint and move towards more sustainable practices.

Immediately after the launch of the FloriPEFCR on 14 February, developers and LCA specialists at Greenhouse Sustainability began implementing the final rules and database into the Flori Footprint Tool. Manager of Software Development Rick van der Linden explains, “With every component that is calculated, the results for all 16 impact categories (including climate change (CO2), water, and ecotoxicity) are displayed immediately.”

Development is on track, and the Flori Footprint Tool is expected to be FloriPEFCR-compliant by the end of Q2.

Verification

The calculation rules and source data, FloriPEFCR, have already received approval. The approval stages ensure that accurate footprint calculations can also be benchmarked.

The next step is for FSI (Floriculture Sustainability Initiative) to approve the calculator. To promote uniformity, conformity, and transparency, FSI is developing a benchmark for available tools, which will ensure consistency in methodology, data verification, and exchange. Once FSI’s benchmark is finalised, the Flori Footprint Tool will be eligible for official recognition as FloriPEFCR-compliant.

The last step involves verifying the entered data, which is currently undergoing testing. The Flori Footprint Tool will be engineered to streamline the data verification process, thereby reducing unnecessary expenses.

Next phase

With the implementation of FloriPEFCR guidelines, the foundation of sustainability in horticulture enters a new phase. Conducting footprint analyses enhances the awareness and understanding of the environmental impact of horticultural products, further driving effective sustainability efforts. Greenhouse Sustainability is assisting growers and other chain partners in analysing results and providing recommendations for improvement.