Sustainability has become a top priority for organizations worldwide, particularly within animal protein value chains, which face increasing scrutiny for their environmental impact. The feed sector plays a crucial role in addressing emissions, and we are seeing businesses take significant steps to adopt practices that benefit both the environmental output and consumer perception of animal agriculture.
Huvepharma has positioned itself as a leader in driving meaningful change within the sector when it comes to sustainability, highlighting its initiatives in a previous Feedinfo Perspectives article. In this update, Stefaan Bekaert, Huvepharma's Global Manager for Sustainability, shares further insights into its ambitious goals. From advancements in renewable energy projects to implementing comprehensive life cycle assessments (LCAs) for its product portfolio, Huvepharma demonstrates that sustainability is not just a goal but a core aspect of its operations.
This interview examines Huvepharma's journey toward carbon neutrality, its innovative strategies for promoting sustainability in livestock farming, and its broader vision for a resilient and efficient global food system.
[Feedinfo] You have talked about some of the sustainability challenges and initiatives Huvepharma has adopted in this previous Feedinfo Perspectives. Can you update us on these projects and the progress you have made?
[Stefaan Bekaert] Huvepharma is vertically integrated, meaning we have complete control over our production. Our R&D and production teams are continuously looking for and implementing process optimizations and improvements. Our primary objective is to use our resources as efficiently as possible as well as investing in renewable energy.
We have chosen to decarbonize our production facilities and aim to reach that goal by 2030. In 2022, we started an ambitious project to install a 300 MW solar plant by 2030. We have currently installed nearly 100 MW of capacity which covers around 35% of our electricity needs.
Huvepharma also operates biomass co-generation plants that allow us to feed 45-50% of our used energy back into our production processes. By the end of 2023, 35% of our total energy use was being produced by renewable energy sources, from facilities owned and operated by ourselves. On top of this, we have been working on water efficiency and improving air quality for a number of years. In 2023, we re-used or recycled 75% of all our water usage.
In 2025, we will focus investments into a battery station to increase our own usage of electricity generated by our solar plant. Geothermal plants will be another point of focus to reduce our dependence on natural gas.
[Feedinfo] How does Huvepharma ensure that its products contribute to sustainable agriculture?
[Stefaan Bekaert] It is our responsibility to provide our customers with full life cycle assessments (LCAs) for our products. For 29 of our products, we already offer a full LCA analysis including enzyme products OptiPhos® Plus and Hostazym®, feed additives B-Act®, Bio D® and Flavomycin®, anticoccidials Monimax® / Monicox®, Sacox® and Coxidin® / Poulcox®, and some products from our veterinary range including Pharmasin®, Tilmovet® and Huvamox®. Last month, we finalized the first LCA for one of our hygiene products, Prophyl® S. By the end of the year, we plan to finish five more product LCAs.
As an animal health and nutrition company we seek to offer solutions for the current and future challenges that modern livestock producers face. Our existing portfolio can help reduce the environmental impact of livestock production. A recent meta-analysis of all trials carried out with OptiPhos(R) Plus - our phytase - showed that the carbon footprint of broiler production was reduced by 3.4 to 5.6%.
In a trial using the maximum matrix values for OptiPhos® Plus and Huvezym® neXo, we saw a reduction in the carbon footprint of up to 10% while technical performance was maintained, and the cost of production was reduced. Huvezym® neXo is our new enzymatic complex containing three different key enzyme activities: xylanase, xyloglucanase and betaglucanase for optimized fiber degradation. These are good examples that sustainability and cost savings can go hand in hand.
The link between healthy animals and improved livestock sustainability is undeniable. With our broad portfolio of products and services, we can approach this in a very holistic way. Whether the goal is prevention (which can be achieved with our hygiene portfolio and vaccines) or maintaining gut health (which can be supported with enzymes, probiotics and anticoccidials) we offer solutions. Our research goes into further developing a range of complementary vaccines, as well as providing our suite of diagnostic and monitoring tools which allow producers to make the best decisions for their businesses to become more sustainable.
[Feedinfo] Looking ahead, can you tell us more about the long-term sustainability goals of Huvepharma and what challenges you face in this sustainability journey?
[Stefaan Bekaert] Our long-term vision is to become carbon neutral by 2030, but also to achieve significant reductions in water usage and waste across our operations. We're also committed to expanding our product portfolio to include new solutions that will address the sustainability challenges faced by our customers.
Although we control the entire production chain, we still rely on suppliers to help us achieve our targets. Through our supply chain teams we are already engaging with our suppliers, outlining our sustainability goals and explaining why they are important to us.
Ultimately, we are part of the livestock value chain and would like to contribute to a global food system that is resilient, efficient, and capable of meeting the needs of a growing population without depleting natural resources.
