HKFoods Implements Environmental Impact Calculation System for Primary Production Together with the Natural Resources Institute Finland and Biocode – “We Want Sustainability Data to Flow Automatically Across the Value Chain”

HKFoods has developed a new environmental impact calculation system for primary production in collaboration with the Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke) and Biocode. The system digitalizes Luke’s life cycle models for pork, poultry, and arable crops. This new solution enables continuous and updated calculations of the water and carbon footprints as well as biodiversity impacts of primary production, offering more reliable reporting. It also provides contract producers with more accurate data on production impacts, helping them target sustainability actions more effectively.

Farms Use the Results for Development and Learning

“HKFoods is constantly working with its contract producers to create more climate-friendly food production. In primary production, efforts are especially focused on reducing emissions from feed production and land use. When sustainability data flows automatically across the value chain, reporting becomes more reliable. Accurate, real-time data directly from the source also helps farms improve their efficiency and sustainability,” says Mikko Järvinen, Director of the Meat Business at HKFoods.

As part of the development project, Luke created life cycle models for crop production at the field level and for animal farming. The producers themselves are responsible for entering the data into HKFoods’ producer portal.

“To ensure comparability, the life cycle models for climate and water scarcity impacts follow Luke’s Food-LCA guidelines, which are aligned with the EU’s Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) methodology. The method used by Luke is openly reported and therefore transparent,” explains Kirsi Usva, Senior Research Scientist at Luke.

HKFoods is the first company in Finland to adopt Luke’s Food-LCA calculation method.

The Goal: Wide-Scale Implementation Across the Pork and Poultry Chains

“In the first phase, our target for 2025 is to include 50% of our production volume in the system. In the long term, we aim to involve a significant share of our contract producers,” says Aira Harju, Development Manager at HKFoods.

Vilja Hannula, CEO of Biocode, which was responsible for the technical implementation, emphasizes the need for adaptation and investment in a rapidly changing world:

“Both the green transition and the rise of AI and automation are expected to drive structural changes within 5–10 years. Companies that invest in learning and data-driven management will have a competitive edge. This is also true for sustainability leadership.”

Harju describes the project as smooth: “The collaboration has worked very well. We’ve maintained active dialogue throughout, and the project progressed as planned and on schedule. The new environmental indicators—biodiversity and water scarcity—further broaden awareness of agriculture’s environmental impacts and encourage the adoption of best practices.”

Closer Value Chain Collaboration Ahead

HKFoods aims to automate data flow across the value chain, which reduces errors and makes data utilization easier. During the project, the company worked closely with feed suppliers. With primary data, producers gain reliable insights into the environmental impacts of different feeds. Meanwhile, contract producers gain visibility into the environmental impact of their production. Centralizing the data enables quick and efficient interaction between different stakeholders.

What’s It About?

Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke): Luke is Finland’s leading research institute in the natural resources sector, providing scientific expertise to support sustainable development. Luke developed life cycle models for poultry, pork, and annual crops following the EU’s Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) method for HKFoods. These models provide reliable and scientific metrics for assessing climate impact, water scarcity, and biodiversity. https://www.luke.fi/en

Biocode: Biocode is a technology company specializing in carbon footprint calculation for the food sector. It provides user-friendly tools for companies and farmers to assess environmental impacts. Biocode built a technical tool for HKFoods based on Luke’s life cycle models and integrated it into HKFoods’ systems.

HKFoods: HKFoods integrated the tool into its producer portal, which serves as an interface for hundreds of pork and poultry farms. Producers enter their data into the system, which is then processed through Biocode’s calculation engine, and the results are returned to the portal. This new model enables environmental impact calculation and monitoring as part of value chain collaboration, promoting sustainability and responsible food production.

With 3,000 professionals, HKFoods produces responsible, locally sourced food for a variety of consumption moments. Well-known brands in Finland include HK®, Kariniemen®, and Via®. The company is developing more climate-friendly food production methods. In 2024, the publicly listed HKFoods had a turnover of €1 billion. www.hkfoods.com