Kouvolan Lakritsi switches to Gasum biogas – licorice factory emissions cut by 119 tonnes a year

Traditional licorice sweets manufacturer Kouvolan Lakritsi is switching to Gasum biogas. From now on all of its licorice and jelly sweets products will be made with 100% Finnish and renewable energy. The switch will cut the licorice factory’s carbon dioxide emissions by 119 tonnes a year – corresponding to the rate of emissions from a car driven around 1,000,000 km. Kouvolan Lakritsi product packaging will carry the biogas label.

Kouvolan Lakritsi is one of the first Finnish companies switching to Gasum biogas. Located in Kouvola, southeastern Finland, the licorice factory will use 100% Finnish energy in the future. Biogas will help the company raise the share of renewable energy significantly in its licorice and jelly sweets production.

”Kouvolan Lakritsi licorice sweets have been awarded as the best licorice product in Finland. This switch to renewable and 100% Finnish biogas helps us ensure our licorice sweets are made with the best energy in Finland,” says CEO Timo Nisula.

Gasum biogas will be sold and delivered to Kouvolan Lakritsi by the local energy company KSS Energia, for which Kouvolan Lakritsi is the first customer switching from natural gas to biogas.

”We offer our customers electricity, district heat and natural gas. Finnish biogas is an excellent addition to our energy mix, and the stricter emission targets and growing environmental awareness of consumers are bound to increase the demand for renewable forms of energy,” says Managing Director Kyösti Jääskeläinen from KSS Energia. A total of 90% of the electricity sold by KSS Energia is environmentally friendly, and renewable sources of energy account for 71% in heat production.

Use of biogas label on the increase

Kouvolan Lakritsi products made with biogas will receive the biogas label communicating the manufacturer’s commitment to environmental responsibility to consumers. Launched in spring 2015, the label has been given an enthusiastic welcome on the market.

”The number of users of the biogas label is increasing rapidly, and it’s great to have Kouvolan Lakritsi join those making quality products with Gasum biogas. Biogas is based on the circular economy and resource wisdom and a cost-effective way for enterprises to reduce their carbon footprint,” says Jani Arala, Gasum’s Business Development Manager for Biogas.

All industrial natural gas customers in Finland can now switch to Finnish biogas. Gasum biogas is upgraded to make it equivalent to natural gas, so the switch to biogas can be made without additional investments in equipment.

Gasum sells biogas to the manufacturing industry, service providers, heat and power production, homes and restaurants using gas cookers, and for use as a road vehicle fuel. Biogas is a Finnish biofuel always made from fully renewable raw materials that is injected into the gas network from Espoo, Kouvola and Lahti.

For further information please contact:

Timo Nisula, CEO, Kouvolan Lakritsi Oy,
Phone: +358 400 490 020, lakutehtailija(a)kouvolanlakritsi.fi

Kyösti Jääskeläinen, Managing Director, KSS Energia Oy
Phone +358 50 5915 200, firstname.surname(a)kssenergia.fi

Jani Arala, Business Development Manager, Biogas and Transport Solutions, Gasum Corporation.
Phone: +358 44 0548 583, firstname.surname(a)gasum.fi