Carbon Neutral shipping is a new buzz term for companies these days. But what does it mean, and is it just another form of greenwashing for corporate companies? We will look into and discuss the different aspects of more sustainable shipping and answer some common questions associated with it.
What you will learn
In this article, we will cover several aspects of carbon-neutral shipping and whether it is a greener alternative to standard shipping. We will cover the following:
- What Carbon Neutral Shipping means
- How Carbon-Neutral Shipping Works
- Why are companies choosing carbon-neutral shipping
We will answer the questions:
- Does carbon-neutral delivery take longer?
- How long does carbon-neutral delivery take?
- Companies that use more sustainable shipping methods
What Carbon Neutral Shipping means
So, what does carbon-neutral shipping mean? We will start with the term carbon neutral; this term joins a list of new areas in sustainability, which you can read more about in our article ‘What is Carbon Neutral?’
Carbon neutrality is a process to reduce carbon emissions in areas of industry like shipping that cannot yet move away from fossil fuels. When a business refers to being carbon neutral, it often means that they offset the fossil fuels used with carbon capture or reduction initiatives.
How does carbon neutral shipping work?
Offsetting carbon works through three factors:
- Mitigating energy use by reducing consumption, improving processes & innovating new ways to be more energy efficient.
- Replacing fossil fuels with electricity from renewable sources.
- Eventually, eliminate the use of fossil fuels across all areas.
Why are companies choosing carbon neutral shipping?
Public demand drives the direction of a company’s future; after all, they want you to buy their stuff. As people become more conscious of their effect on the planet, the demand for more sustainable products grows.
Many companies also signed up for the Paris 2030 Agenda by the UN, which has set out goals to help reduce the overall greenhouse gasses produced worldwide. One of the ways to do this is through carbon offsetting to become carbon neutral.
Does carbon-neutral delivery take longer?
Generally, it only takes a little while if you send your package using carbon-neutral delivery. It takes roughly the same time because carbon neutrality means the company will offset the carbon used in your delivery journey. To offset the carbon used, a company will use carbon capture or carbon reduction initiatives such as planting trees & methane destruction.
How long does Carbon Neutral shipping take?
Carbon-neutral shipping usually takes the same time as your standard packages because the aim is to offset the carbon used, rather than reduce the amount of what they use. Shipping is struggling to move away from fossil fuels, so to help mitigate the damage, companies will partake in carbon reduction & capture programs.
Some fleets are using more and more green alternatives, like Evergreen, who set out to be pioneers in sustainable sea haulage in 1968! Their current fleet is an impressive combination of technologies to help reduce most ships’ negative impact on the ocean and planet.
You can learn more about Evergreen’s unique eco fleet here.
Carbon-neutral shipping companies
The list of companies offering more sustainable shipping is growing daily due to a public desire for more sustainable products. Three examples of companies that use carbon neutral shipping are:
Summary
In summary, carbon-neutral shipping reduces the CO2 used in transportation to 0% through offsetting. A company will offset their emissions with carbon capture projects like reforestation & reducing greenhouse gasses where possible. Due to the large amounts of fuel required in haulage across the open sea, shipping is an area that needs help to use renewable energy. Therefore, companies reduce the negative effect through carbon capture.
