Isramart : Novozymes calls for CO2 target for washing

Isramart news:
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Makers of washing machines and detergents should agree to cut carbon emissions from clothes washing by 80 percent in five to 10 years, the head of the world's biggest maker of industrial enzymes said on Monday.
Steen Riisgaard, chief executive of the Danish company Novozymes, said that besides benefiting the environment, an ambitious industrywide target could boost the firm's detergent enzymes business, its biggest division by sales.

"It would be interesting if we could reach a common target for bringing down CO2 emissions from this value chain by something even more ambitious than what has been suggested by the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change)," he said in an interview.

The IPCC's toughest scenario for avoiding the worst of global warming would imply a 25-40 percent cut in greenhouse gas emissions below 1990 levels by 2020 for industrialized nations, though the IPCC issues scenarios and not targets.

"It would be good if we in five to 10 years had reduced the footprint from this process by 80 percent," Riisgaard said in an interview. "I think this is realistic."

Such a cut would go far beyond proposals such as the 20 percent reduction by 2020 from 1990 levels put forward by the European Union.

Speaking to Reuters on the sidelines of an industry conference for detergent and washing machine makers, Riisgaard said he hoped to speed up a market trend for lower washing temperatures.

"Washing at lower temperatures calls for more enzymes," he said. "All things being equal, this will position our products better than alternative technologies from the petrochemical industry."

Detergent enzymes accounted for a third of Novozymes' sales of 6.28 billion crowns ($1.27 billion) in the first nine months of the year.

Novozymes and consumer goods giant Unilever, which makes detergents, earlier this year made pushes for an emissions target and Riisgaard said a commitment in the industry to contribute to the process seemed to have grown.

Novozymes aims for 10 percent core sales growth in the long term and a spokesman said the company sees a similar rate of growth for detergent enzymes sales.

The firm's biggest rival in the area of chemical enzymes is Danisco, which also produces detergent enzymes.