FOOD RETAIL


Tackling HFCs: the transition to clean cold


Eric Winandy.


One year after the signing of the Kigali Amendment, University of Birmingham’s Cold Economy Professor, Toby Peters, has published a new industry whitepaper examining how European retailers are progressing with the phase-down of HFCs and the transition to sustainable cooling. Here, Eric Winandy, director of integrated solutions for Emerson Climate Technologies, which supported the report, off ers his thoughts on the challenges and opportunities of helping retailers transition to alternative refrigeration solutions.


S Professor Toby Peters. 20 October 2017


eptember marks the one year anniversary of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, a historic agreement to manage the phase-down of


hydrofl ourocarbons (HFCs), or ‘F-Gases’. By setting a clear timetable for countries to act, the Amendment begins to tackle the climate emissions of a group of greenhouse gases that can be thousands of times more potent than carbon dioxide.


According to one estimate, the deal could save 70bn tonnes of carbon dioxide-equivalent (CO2


e) by 2050, avoiding almost 0.5°C of warming.


Given the size and scale of the cooling industry through food retail alone, it is of course critical that European retailers phase-down HFCs. There is a huge opportunity for the HVACR industry and retailers to collaborate on improving refrigeration systems and in the process tackle climate change.


But just one year on from the Amendment, reports indicate we are already behind schedule. According to Professor Peters’ fi ndings from industry discussions, “If commercial refrigeration faces an imminent crisis, it is partly because food retailers have not yet done


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