VIDEBÆK, Denmark, Aug 19 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) —Arla Foods Ingredients is taking a major step towards reducing its CO2 emissions on dairy level. A newly completed 8 million euro investment in a new heating system for Production Tower 4 at the Danmark Protein plant in Videbæk will deliver annual savings of 2,500 tonnes of CO2, equivalent to the annual heating consumption of more than 900 households using natural gas.
As part of the project, the tower is being converted from operating with a gas heater to being able to switch between heat from the plant’s existing steam system and a new electric heater. This will reduce the use of natural gas and allow renewable electricity to take over part of the operation. Calculations show that Tower 4 will be able to operate 100% on renewable electricity for 23% of the time.
“This investment improves operational reliability, strengthen security of supply and reduce our climate impact.” says Mogens Bøgh Pedersen, Director of the Danmark Protein plant.
Electrification significantly reduces CO2 emissions
Switching between steam and electricity allows Arla Foods Ingredients to use electricity when wind and solar power drive prices down and reduce consumption when prices rise, supporting flexible consumption in the Danish power grid while creating a strong financial business case.
The new solution is an important part of Arla’s strategy to electrify production and provides greater flexibility in energy consumption, enhanced reliability and opportunities for future development.
While the new heating system in Tower 4 is now operational, a similar project is being planned for Tower 5. Together, the investments in Towers 4 and 5 will reduce CO2 emissions by up to 5,200 tonnes annually, equivalent to the annual heating consumption of more than 1,900 households.
“In addition to delivering substantial CO2e savings, this investment also represents a very strong business case. We will also seek to scale across our other sites,” says Paul van Rooij, Vice President, Supply Chain, Arla Foods Ingredients.
Facts about the investment
Investment in new heating system for Tower 4: approx. EUR 8.3 million
Annual CO2 reduction (Tower 4): approx. 2,500 tonnes
Total potential (Towers 4 + 5): up to 5,200 tonnes of CO2
Based on Danish Energy Agency standards, 2,500 tonnes of CO2 corresponds to the annual heating consumption of 919 households, while 5,200 tonnes corresponds to 1,911 households.
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 31 (Bernama) — Pacific Prime has successfully led an emergency relief mission to support victims of the earthquake that struck northern Cebu last month, leaving hundreds displaced, mourning, and in urgent need of shelter, food, and clean water.
In a statement, Pacific Prime said 57 team members and volunteers helped gather and pack relief goods, with 25 volunteers travelling north to deliver supplies directly to the most severely affected areas.
In addition, staff from Pacific Prime offices in Cebu, Singapore, and Dubai contributed generously, with donations matched by global leaders Neil Raymond and Vittoria Depino. A total of US$5,400 was raised, allowing the team to support over 450 individuals and families across five municipalities. (US$1=RM4.19)
“In times of crises, our team rises – driven by compassion, collaboration, and community spirit. A huge thank you goes out to all the volunteers for their dedication and courage, enduring long hours and tough conditions.
“It is truly inspiring to be part of an organisation that leads with heart, one that lives its values of Impact, Courage, and Selflessness,” said Pacific Prime Cebu head, Lohrie May Labra.
The initial wave of aid reached 354 families and individuals, while the following week, with remaining funds and support from Lacson & Lacson, additional relief such as drinking water, blankets, sleeping mats, and sacks of rice was delivered to over 100 residents still living in tents due to ongoing aftershocks.
This initiative, while not part of the originally planned corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities for the year, became one of the most meaningful, reflecting Pacific Prime’s commitment to its CSR pillars, where Community stands as a core value – driving efforts to support those in need and build resilience in times of crisis.
Established in 2000, Pacific Prime is an award-winning global insurance brokerage and employee benefits specialist that offers individual and corporate insurance solutions.
Photo: Group photograph of our employees and family members with PLASTIFY
Spreading awareness on marine trash in support for World Cleanup Day
SINGAPORE, Sept 30 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) — Mitsui Chemicals Asia Pacific (MCAP) – In the early hours of 20 September 2025, a dedicated group of 15 employees from the affiliates in Singapore and their family members came together to make a tangible impact on the environment in celebration of World Cleanup Day. Partnering with sustainability-focused organization PLASTIFY, the team conducted a coastal cleanup that resulted in the collection of more than 145kg of trash.
The cleanup effort, under the group’s global cleanup name, Clean-up Caravan, uncovered a wide range of marine debris, including washed-up jerry cans, polystyrene foam bits, cigarette butts, and single-use plastic bags. It is a stark reminder of the ongoing challenges posed by plastic pollution.
The event was part of a global movement that unites millions of volunteers across the world to tackle the mismanaged waste crisis. The group’s efforts contribute to a cleaner, healthier planet and underscore the importance of collective action.
About Mitsui Chemicals Group Clean-up Caravan
Launched in 2019, the Clean-up Caravan brings affiliates worldwide together to prevent litter from entering waterways and oceans. In Singapore, employees are encouraged to join these activities to better understand litter issues and promote proper waste disposal and recycling.
About Mitsui Chemicals Group in Singapore
Singapore is home to five affiliates for the Mitsui Chemicals Group. Besides MCAP, the Asia Pacific Regional Headquarters of Mitsui Chemicals Inc., the four other entities are Mitsui Elastomers Singapore, Prime Evolue Singapore, SDC Technologies Asia Pacific, and Mitsui Chemicals Singapore R&D Centre.
Being the Asia Pacific Regional Headquarters, MCAP strives to drive business growth, provide robust functional services to regional affiliates and businesses, and deliver value to customers by leveraging on the strengths of all affiliates in the Mitsui Chemicals Group.
About Plastify
PLASTIFY recycles plastic waste into functional goods, including custom products and furniture, and facilitates educational workshops.
For enquiries about this release, please contact the following: Eric Lim Corporate & Marketing Communication Mitsui Chemicals Asia Pacific, Ltd. eric.lim@mitsuichemicals.com
KUALA LUMPUR, June 30 (Bernama) — The Guizhou Provincial Government has announced that the Eco Forum Global Guiyang 2025 will be convened from July 5 to 6 in the provincial capital of Guiyang, following approval by the State Council of China.
Hosted by the People’s Government of Guizhou Province, the two-day event will carry the theme “Harmonious Coexistence between Humans and Nature – Discussing Global Development and Green Transformation” and is expected to draw approximately 800 delegates, according to a statement.
As China’s sole national and international forum focused on the theme of eco-civilisation, the Eco Forum Global Guiyang has steadily built its profile over the course of 12 previous editions, earning growing attention on the global stage.
Organisers aim to position this year’s iteration as a dynamic platform for dialogue, partnership, and actionable outcomes, particularly in the realm of sustainable development and ecological governance.
Preparations for the forum are reportedly progressing in an orderly fashion, with a rich programme of activities scheduled, including the opening ceremony, thematic forums, off-site visits, promotional displays, green investment promotion, and the debut of new environmental protection products and technologies.
Notably, this year marks a significant step forward in international collaboration. For the first time since 2018, international organisations will play a substantive role in shaping the forum’s agenda. Of the 20 planned thematic forums, 11 will feature participation by international entities, with four forums to be independently hosted by these organisations.
The forum also serves as an extension of China’s engagement with major multilateral climate processes. It is expected to respond to key themes arising from global environmental conferences such as COP16 and COP29, with a focus on practical cooperation in areas including climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation.
A core objective of the 2025 edition is to share China’s experience in eco-civilisation and green transformation, particularly with developing nations across the Global South, reinforcing cooperation in sustainable development. The forum also seeks to catalyse global efforts to address what it identifies as the three pressing environmental challenges.
Through this initiative, Guizhou is positioning itself as a hub for international green collaboration and innovation, seeking to “pool wisdom” and “attract investment”, empowering new quality productivity and high-quality development.
Citizens visit Denggaoyunshan Park in Guiyang City.
Guizhou, located in the southwest of China, is using an ecological pen to paint a gorgeous green picture along her mountains and rivers. From an ‘Experimental Zone’ to a ‘Pilot Zone’, Guizhou has embarked on a new path of green development characterized with prosperous economy, wealthy people and ecological beauty.
SignificantImprovement inEco–environment
Guizhou persists in winning the ‘Five Major Battles’ of pollution prevention and control and coordinates the integrated eco-restoration of mountains, rivers, lakes, farmland, forests, grasslands and deserts. By 2024, the ambient air quality in 9 key cities and 88 counties in Guizhou has met Grade II, and the overall surface water quality has been remarkable. The excellent water quality rate of 222 monitoring sections of major rivers is 99.1%, and that of 23 exit sections reaches 100%. The water quality compliance rate of centralized drinking water sources at or above the county level remains 100%.
The Wushui River (Wuyang River) in Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture has been successfully selected as one of the Outstanding Cases of Beautiful Rivers and Lakes in China. Since 2019, the water quality in Qiandongnan Prefecture has been among the top 10 in China for six consecutive years. Mr. Wu Hougui, a member of the Loong Boat Team in Ximen Community, Zhenyuan County, said, ‘The Loong Boat Competition tradition can not be inherited for thousands of years without lucid waters and lush mountains.’
FlourishingGreenIndustries
Guizhou is accelerating the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries, integrating green and low-carbon concept throughout the entire process of high-quality development. Guizhou has successfully established 85 national level green factories and 22 green industrial parks. The green economy accounts for about 48%.
The first commercial hydrogen locomotive in China has started trial operation on Guizhou Meijin Railway Special Line in Zhongshan District, Liupanshui City, opening up a new path for clean coal transportation. The construction of ‘Electric Guizhou’ has achieved fruitful results. Since the beginning of 2025, a total of 3,054 electric heavy-duty trucks have been promoted and applied in the energy sector, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by about 332,000 tons.
The forestry has also achieved a huge leap forward. In 2014, the total output value of Guizhou’s forestry was only 60.1 billion yuan, and it exceeded 465.4 billion yuan in 2024. Over the past decade, the forest coverage rate has increased from 49% to 63.3%, with a forest area of 166 million mu.
Innovative Eco–protectionSystem
In 2024, Guizhou took the lead in establishing a unified and standardized mechanism for issuing forestry carbon tickets at the provincial level in China, granting the first batch of 10 provincial forestry carbon tickets and achieving a total of 11 million yuan in transactions. In addition, a total of 120 water rights transactions have been completed, with a transaction volume of 86.0287 million cubic meters, amounting to 31.5387 million yuan.
Public Participation inEco–construction
Guizhou’s tradition of ‘Tree Planting for New Year Celebrations’ has continued for 11 years, with 605 million more seedlings newly planted here. Since the 14 th Five-Year-Plan, Guizhou has shifted its greening focus from ‘coverage expansion’ to ‘quality improvement’. Through projects such as degraded forest restoration and forest nurturing, the forest has been both ‘greened’ and ‘increased in value’.
Meanwhile, with both ‘civil defense and technical defense’, Guizhou has successfully protected the ecological foundation. For instance, there are 87 remote video surveillance points established in Guiyang to prevent forest fire. There are 400 infrared cameras installed to track the rare species in Mount Fanjing and more than 40,000 forest chiefs ready to guard forest resources. Collaborative mechanisms such as ‘forest chief+procurator’ and ‘forest chief+sheriff’ have formed a comprehensive matrix for ecological protection.
EfficientResource Utilizationand Green Transformation
Guizhou has implemented the strategy of ‘Refined Development of Rich Minerals’ to promote efficient utilization of resources. In the field of phosphorus chemical industry, Qiannan Prefecture has laid out modern chemical and new energy battery material industries, realizing the transformation of phosphorus from ‘fertilizer’ to ‘material’. The total output value of phosphorus based modern chemical and new energy battery materials has exceeded 50 billion yuan. Furthermore, in the field of aluminum industry, Shuicheng Economic Development Zone has achieved 100% in-situ conversion of aluminum liquid, and the number of aluminum related enterprises has increased from 1 in 2016 to 54.
Guizhou is also actively developing the cultural tourism industry and digital economy. The Zhenyuan Loong Boat Race Cultural Festival has unleashed the consumption potential of cultural tourism. During the Loong Boat Festival this year, Zhenyuan County received 253,900 tourists, realizing a total tourism revenue of 234 million yuan. Additionally, Guizhou’s digital economy growth rate has been among the top in the country for 9 consecutive years. There are 48 national key data centers under construction and in operation, making Guizhou one of the regions with the most intelligent computing resources and the strongest capabilities in China.
Source: Guizhou Environmental Protection Industry Association
Caption: Citizens visit Denggaoyunshan Park in Guiyang City.
