The new electric vehicle will become the first foodservice vehicle to carry the ‘climate stripes’ graphic, which is designed to highlight the issue of rising global temperatures. The climate stripes were created by Professor Ed Hawkins at the University of Reading and are designed to show how global average temperatures have risen over nearly two centuries.
Peter Jackson, chief executive of Sysco in Great Britain, said: “Food and transport are two of the most carbon-intensive sectors. We have a huge responsibility to tackle climate change through our operations and inspire our customers to do the same.
“We are on a journey to create a future where a delivery of sustainable produce arrives on an electric vehicle, charged with solar panels at the zero carbon depot. This is an important step. But we cannot do this alone and we need to work in partnership with customers, manufacturers, Government and the rest of the foodservice industry. We can only achieve real change if we work together.
“Our position in the food system creates an opportunity to inspire our customers to transform their menus and the food that they buy – by far the biggest portion of our own carbon emissions. We hope that the climate stripes on this vehicle will raise awareness of the challenge.”
As part of the launch, Jackson called for greater partnership with Government to support the uptake of zero emissions fleets, highlighting the challenges of a lack of infrastructure and the support needed to decarbonise commercial fleets.
Globally, Sysco has already announced its intention to electrify 35% of its North American fleet by 2030 as it seeks to reduce its direct carbon emissions by 27.5% by 2030. Sysco also has an ambition to stop buying new diesel vehicles in Great Britain by 2030.