DPD to Deliver Carbon Neutral Packages by July

Logistics company DPD has announced plans to move to completely carbon-neutral shipping, at no extra cost to customers.

The German shipper, a subsidiary of GeoPost and La Poste, says it is working to reduce the carbon dioxide it produces and will offset the remaining CO2 generated in its five biggest markets – France, Germany, the U.K., Netherlands and BeLux – starting in July, with the rest of DPD’s markets joining in the near future.

The offsets will total about 500,000 tons a year, covering emissions from transport, building, packaging sales and paper consumption, although DPD expects the figure to fall. This will ensure that every parcel sent via the DPD network is carbon neutral, an industry first, the company says.

DPD says it uses mostly roads instead of air transport, helping to keep emissions down and differentiating itself from its competition. But the company says it still generates a significant amount of carbon. Over 90 percent of these emissions are generated by transporting parcels, with the remainder generated by buildings and packaging, DPD says.

Current CO2 reduction initiatives – which DPD refers to as “insetting” – include:

• Using delivery bikes instead of small vans in Hamburg;
• Vans running entirely on natural gas in the Netherlands;
• Using rail instead of road to transport parcels in Germany;
• Reducing energy consumption in DPD buildings across France by using automatic light switches and locking thermostats.

Further insetting initiatives will be announced in the coming months, DPD says.