Kingsmill has become the first UK bread brand to include the Carbon Trust’s Carbon Reduction label on-pack.

It will be used on Kingsmill’s Great Everyday White, Tasty Wholemeal and 50/50 sub-brands from the end of June.

A recent study by the Carbon Trust, looking at the manufac- turers’ best-selling sub-brands, revealed that Great Everyday White and Tasty Wholemeal have a carbon footprint of 1.3kg CO2e per loaf, and Kingsmill 50/50 has a footprint of 1.2kg CO2e.

The study was conducted in accordance with PAS 2050 & Footprint Expert, with the three brands representing 80% of Kingsmill’s volume sales.

The study identified several areas affecting carbon emissions for the three brands, from growing wheat to baking, packing and distribution. Kingsmill will be looking to reduce the emissions of these going forward.

"We’re extremely committed to understanding the principles of carbon footprinting and identify areas we can improve upon to reduce the environmental impact of our bakery products," said Kingsmill CEO Mark Fairweather. "Since the Kingsmill brand’s relaunch in 2007, we’ve been working to decentralise the bakery network, which has allowed us to increase our regional commercial focus and has resulted in a reduction in carbon emissions of 8,000 tonnes.

"However, we are determined to do more and that is why we’ve been working closely with the Carbon Trust since November ’08 to quantify, reduce and communicate the carbon footprint for each of our three best-selling sub-brands," he added.