Energy & Climate

The 2020 climate and energy strategy (KES2020) sets specific reduction targets for the individual business areas of Migros. The targets cover energy consumption as well as greenhouse emissions.

Cooperative Retailing and M-Industry

As part of KES2020, Cooperative Retailing has set itself the ambitious target of using 10% less power and emitting 20% less greenhouse gases between 2010 and 2020.

Migros will reduce greenhouse gases by twice as much as Switzerland as a whole within this period. It will therefore make an above-average contribution to the government’s energy strategy and Swiss climate protection. At the beginning of this year, Migros was presented with the Watt d’Or award by the Swiss Federal Office of Energy, in recognition of its Generation M sustainability programme and the company’s decade-long commitment to climate protection and energy efficiency.

In 2015, Cooperative Retailing reduced power consumption by 4.9% in absolute terms in comparison to 2010. In the same period, greenhouse gas emissions have been cut by 17%. This reduction was largely due to the use of CO2 cooling systems and the switch to LED lighting in the branches.

The 27 companies of M-Industry pursue the 2020 climate and energy targets which involve specific reductions per tonne produced. The industrial enterprises are aiming to reduce power consumption by 0.7% a year and heat consumption by 1.8% per tonne produced. CO2 emissions from fossil fuels are to be reduced by 10% in absolute terms between 2010 and 2020.

Commerce, Financial Services & Travel

Since 2014, corporate environmental protection has been a component of the basic requirements that apply to all companies in the Migros Group. These allow the companies to be gradually incorporated into the group's energy and environmental management and means that they determine measurable targets on the basis of their business model and industry. In 2015, the companies Denner, Migros Bank and Hotelplan Suisse, among others, consolidated their corporate environmental protection strategies.

The Migros Group produces 297'663t of greenhouse gas emissions each year. In order to reduce its emissions, Migros' first and most important measure is to save energy. In addition to sustainable construction, it invests in energy-efficient store installations and equipment as well as new technology, and it trains its employees to be more economical.

LED lighting in all stores 

Cooperative Retailing has been using LED lighting technology in all new buildings and conversions of Migros branches and specialist markets since 2015. This cuts power consumption for lighting in a branch by half. Out of a total of 804 Migros branches and specialist markets, 201 had been fully and approx. 140 partially equipped with LED in the sales area by the end of 2015. More locations are being converted to LED all the time.

More training in catering services

Correct use and operation of machinery is essential for exploiting potential savings to the full. That is why Migros invests in training its employees. In 2015, more training courses were held for staff in the area of catering services. The branches are making increasing use of state-of-the-art dishwashers and cookers that require less energy, water and chemicals. It is hoped that these measures will reduce power consumption by 10% between 2010 and 2020.

Mibelle uses energy-efficient production process

Migros is always on the look-out for potential savings, including in M-Industry. For example, Mibelle introduced a new emulsion production method in 2015. This energy-efficient process uses cold instead of hot water when producing many of the cosmetics, which reduces energy consumption by up to 46'000 kWh per year. Mibelle is already producing around 30% of its emulsions in this way, with more to follow.

Climate workshop for apprentices

When searching for potential savings, Migros also encourages its apprentices to get involved in this issue. Several Migros companies offer their apprentices the chance to take part in a climate workshop organised by the myclimate foundation, during which they work on projects in the areas of climate protection, energy conservation, energy efficiency and renewable energy.

In 2015, a polymechanics apprentice at Jowa AG won the climate workshop’s national project competition in the energy category. He developed a procedure that can considerably reduce the amount of compressed air used by production equipment. The method will enable Jowa AG to use less energy and save money.

Migros not only reduces its greenhouse gas emissions through better energy efficiency but also by replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy. Eleven out of the 13 logistics centres use heat from biomass, district heating from incineration plants or waste heat.

Migros replacing fossil fuels

Since 2014, waste heat is being used to prepare all hot and warm water in the deep-freeze warehouse of Bischofszell Nahrungsmittel AG in Sitterdorf (TG). An additional heat storage system captures the waste heat from the compressors, which eliminates the need for fossil fuels.

Since 2014, Bischofszell Nahrungmittel AG has also been diverting the steam used to peel potatoes back into a tank, where hot water and central heating water are produced via two heat exchangers. As a result of the investment, the amount of heat required in 2015 was 470 MWh lower than in the previous year, which corresponds to 50'000l of heating oil.

Since 2015, Migros-Verteilbetrieb Neuendorf AG (MVN) has been using the waste heat from its cooling systems in frozen goods logistics to heat the building, produce hot water and operate the underfloor heating in the warehouse. Heating oil had previously been used for this purpose. The system will start to show its full potential this year. MVN AG calculates that it saves 290'000 litres of heating oil per year (around 96% of annual consumption) and cuts CO2 emissions by 765t per year.

Jowa AG will also start using renewable energy in the future. In the reporting year, it decided to invest CHF 7 million in the construction of a wood-fired heating plant, which will enable the company to reduce its CO2 emissions by 3'000t to 11'000t per year across all locations. The wood-fired heating plant will guarantee a constant supply of heat and cover more than 60% of the energy required for heating purposes. Natural gas will continue to be used for energy peaks. The wood-fired heating plant is due for completion in 2017.

Migros uses solar energy

Switzerland’s biggest solar power plant, with an output of 6.7 megawatt peak (MWp), is located on the roofs of Migros-Verteilbetrieb Neuendorf AG (MVN). In 2015, the plant was extended to the roof of a new warehouse and can now produce close to 30% more electricity than before. The system consists of close to 26'000 solar panels across an area of more than 46'000m2 – equivalent to 177 tennis courts.

For all new buildings and conversions, the Migros Cooperative Eastern Switzerland assesses the viability of photovoltaic systems as standard. An energy-neutral branch that is operated entirely with solar energy was opened in Zuzwil in 2015.

A total of 88 solar power plants with an installed output of 26'271 kWp could be found on the roofs of Migros buildings at the end of 2015. They generate some 25'360 MWh of power annually, which corresponds to the power consumption of around 7'000 average households.

The Minergie-certified surface area within the Migros Group amounts to 885'275 m2.

In 2015, Migros used the natural refrigerant CO2 to operate around 25% of the cooling systems in the branches of Cooperative Retailing; this corresponds to 470 of the approximately 1'900 systems in its branches. 

In 2011, Migros became the first retailer in Switzerland to use glass doors on its refrigeration cabinets, reducing power consumption for cooling by 30-45%. Migros has since fitted 189 branches with glass doors (fully or partially), with more conversions to follow. This corresponds to 6'570 running metres of cooling units.

Award for innovative cooling system

In 2015, the cooling system in Mythen-Center Schwyz (Migros Cooperative Lucerne) won an award in the innovation category at the international energy management congress EHI in Cologne, Germany.

Equipping the branch with this new system will make it considerably more energy efficient. This is due to three factors: the use of liquid refrigerants, groundwater cooling, and special ejectors in the CO2 cooling system. Thanks to the system, the branch will reduce the amount of energy used in refrigeration and freezing by 25%.

tegut…: Germany’s first climate-friendly branch

The climate-friendly tegut… branch in Marburg-Cappel (Hesse) has been awarded the Blue Angel, which distinguishes it as a highly energy-efficient operation. The branch uses only climate-friendly, natural refrigerants, and its energy consumption is 30% lower than comparable older branches.

Since 2014, Migros has aimed to construct all new buildings and conversions of Migros branches in accordance with the sustainable construction standard Nachhaltiges Bauen Migros, thereby making them even more environmentally friendly.

In the reporting year, Migros made further efforts to refine its tool for measuring adherence to the standard. The new version, which features optimised processes and is easier to use, will be available to all Cooperatives from this year. In 2015, 36 new buildings or conversions were constructed in accordance with the standard.

These include the new Minergie-certified branch in Eglisau (ZH). In comparison to the old branch, it consumes almost 43% less energy per square metre of store space and more than 50% less per running metre of cooling units. In addition to energy-efficient construction, an innovative cooling system, featuring a heat pump and a function for producing cold water for air conditioning, also helps to save energy. A 1'490 m2, 245 kilowatt peak (kWp) photovoltaic system covers more than half of the branch's electricity requirement.

Habitat for animals and plants

To promote biodiversity, Migros made a promise under the Generation M sustainability programme to create at least 2.5 million m2 of near-natural habitat by the end of 2015. A total of 24 company premises and more than 2.7 million m2 were certified as near-natural habitat by the Nature & Business Foundation. Migros thereby met its promise.
In front of the Zugerland shopping centre in Steinhausen, for example, a 340 m2 wild bee paradise with nesting sites and flowering plants was built in 2015 as a food source for bees. In addition, three bee hives with 150'000 honey bees were installed on the roof of the Neuchâtel/Fribourg Cooperative's Marin Centre. The shopping centre is surrounded by 26'000 m2 of premises featuring a near-natural design and an insect hotel. To highlight Migros' commitment in this area, a natural garden roadshow was held in three large shopping centres of the Lucerne Cooperative.
2.7 million m2 of near-natural habitat was created.

Sustainable construction symposium

In 2015, the annual internal symposium Immobilien was dedicated to the topic of sustainable construction. Around a hundred participants from all Migros Group companies spent a full day addressing the latest concepts and their impact on the economy.

These included the climate and energy policy, the 2'000-Watt Society and the Network of Sustainable Construction. Representatives from IKEA, Suva and Migros presented their strategies, along with specific practical examples for the real estate area. One speaker showed how waste will be used as a commodity and construction material in the future.

In 2015, Migros opened its first plus-energy branch in Zuzwil (SG). The branch of the Eastern Switzerland Cooperative covers its annual energy requirement with a 279 kWp photovoltaic plant. There is special focus on energy-efficient construction according to the Minergie standard and Migros' own Nachhaltiges Bauen standard for sustainable construction. 

It is not just the construction method that is highly energy-efficient but also the branch operations and all building systems. The branch uses the natural refrigerant CO2 to operate its fridges and freezer units. As a by-product of commercial food refrigeration, a considerable amount of heating energy is generated, which is used to heat the building. To generate hot water, the branch uses heat pump boilers – no fossil fuels are used. The intelligent building management system automates many of the processes. For example, the energy-saving 100% LED lighting is controlled via time-switch channels, and all heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) processes are automated.