New carbon codes let consumers decide how products are carbon-neutralized

DEMO 09 company eFormic focuses on climate change

A new system for certifying carbon-neutral products and giving consumers the ability to choose between different carbon offset programs was unveiled Monday at DEMO 09.

The company eFormic introduced CO2code, which consists of carbon-neutral labels that can be placed on a product and a Web site that lets consumers see how a product has been carbon-neutralized.

View a slideshow off 11 cool tech products at DEMO

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A new system for certifying carbon-neutral products and giving consumers the ability to choose between different carbon offset programs was unveiled Monday at DEMO 09.

The company eFormic introduced CO2code, which consists of carbon-neutral labels that can be placed on a product and a Web site that lets consumers see how a product has been carbon-neutralized.

View a slideshow off 11 cool tech products at DEMO

Every product you buy, whether it's the orange juice you drink at breakfast or the fuel you put into your Toyota Prius, results in the production of carbon dioxide that contributes to global warming, said Pieter van Midwoud, CEO and co-founder of eFormic.

To offset these emissions, many companies pour money into projects that replace nonrenewable energy with renewable energy, or plant trees to absorb carbon dioxide. If such a company buys a CO2code, it can put a label on a product that certifies the project is carbon neutral and provides consumers with a code that can be entered into the CO2code Web site. Entering the code brings the consumer to a page showing the amount of emissions caused in the production of the specific product, and information on a climate project intended to balance those emissions, complete with a Google Maps image showing the location of the project.

Companies can give consumers a choice between multiple programs. For example, a person who buys orange juice can decide whether to balance the emissions by supporting a solar project in California or a wind farm overseas. If a project isn’t chosen, the system automatically assigns one after a set period of time.

"The CO2code can be used by every business, every product, for every service," said eFormic co-founder Moriz Vohrer.

The DEMO 09 conference is making its own attempts to go green, said Executive Producer Chris Shipley. To offset the conference's emissions, eFormic supplied 1,000 tons of carbon credits, she said. The CO2code service will help transform the way we think about carbon credits, Shipley said.

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