We always prefer renewable energy

The Kalev plant uses electricity from 100% renewable sources. Heating energy comes from a district heating system with 90% wood chips, including different types of wood waste used in the boiler house. The production of wood chips is mainly based on waste from the furniture industry and forest rubble.

From 2016, the annual climate emissions of the Kalev plant have decreased by 90%. The result has mainly been achieved thanks to the use of electricity from a renewable source, as well as systemic work in increasing the energy efficiency and the overall production efficiency of the plant.

We are energy efficient

100% of the lighting of the Kalev factory territory, production building and warehouses is already equipped with LED lighting today. It is significantly more energy efficient and practically maintenance-free in the first five years. In addition, the light intensity increased, which made our working environment much better.

We ensure that equipment and lighting are switched off outside working hours to avoid unnecessary energy consumption. Every year, we invest significant amounts in new production equipment, the procurement of which also includes energy efficiency as an important criterion.
We are constantly working to ensure that our production processes are as efficient as possible. We invested in the energy monitoring system for continuous monitoring of energy consumption and operational detection of deviations, which started operating in the first quarter of 2022.

Sustainable water circulation system

The Kalev plant has a water circulation system that allows water to be consumed sparingly. The energy monitoring system mentioned above also monitors water consumption in real time. The plant also has its own waste water treatment system, which ensures that there is a minimum of waste water in the channelled water. In 2022, we will also invest in systems for more efficient use of condensate in production. As a result, water consumption is estimated to decrease by about 1,300 m³ per year.

Waste is important to us

The paper and cardboard waste from production is recycled. We also collect plastic waste, hazardous chemicals, electrical equipment and municipal waste separately – all of them are handled in accordance with the Waste Act. Starting from 2022, we are directing the production waste generated at the Kalev plant to the production of energy at the thermal power plant. The longer-term goal is to find a partner with the capacity to produce biogas from organic waste.

Food is not for wasting

We are actively engaged in reducing wastage in production processes. We are constantly trying to find additional ways to use substandard production in the production of other products. For example, we are already partially using them into our legendary Komeet and Teekonna candy. Therefore, sometimes there may be small variations in the flavours of these candies.

In addition, we package and sell non-standard chocolates and candy in Kalev chocolate shops, which can be bought as a weighed product. As compared to regular products they have equivalent quality, but are not completely compliant to our standards when it comes to appearance, weight or for example amount of additional ingredients. The taste can also differ from the usual. In addition, we sell at attractive process, the test products and leftovers from raw materials that sometimes remain in warehouses after the end of production.

Our environmentally friendlier fleet of cars

In 2014, we replaced our current cars with more environmentally friendly hybrid cars. The fuel consumption of a hybrid fleet is 20% lower than before and they emit significantly less carbon dioxide into the environment. Furthermore, the level of safety and comfort equipment of hybrid cars is also significantly better than before.

Our products are safe

We believe that food quality and safety are the cornerstone of strong customer and consumer relations and ensure long-term consumer confidence in products. 

The same strict quality standards apply to all markets where Orkla companies produce or sell their products. Products and production processes produced at the Kalev plant comply with the requirements set out in EU, Estonian and other relevant legislation. Auditing our suppliers of raw materials to make sure that they take the same commitment to food safety as we do is also an important part.

Quality and food safety are the responsibility of every worker who directly affects the ingredients, packaging, production, storage and transport of products. We contribute to product quality and product safety through continuous training of employees. We are constantly working on monitoring and analysing the quality of our products and improving our processes to ensure consumer satisfaction.

The art of preserving sweets

The term “best before” refers to the minimum shelf life of a product. After the expiry of the “best before” date, the product may lose its flavouring properties, change in texture or consistency, but is still suitable to eat for some time and does not pose a health risk. “Use by” refers to the final date of sale and consumption. Such labelling is on perishable products such as meat, fish products. Kalev’s sweets are products of long shelf-life and our packaging has a “best before” label. Kalev candy is mostly preserved for half a year. Chocolates for 10-12 months. Handmade candy has a shorter shelf life. When storing chocolate in the refrigerator, a layer of fat crystals can form on top of it, as a result of which the chocolate turns greyish on the top. It is called “greying” and in no way poses a health risk. The ideal storage temperature for sweets is 17-18 °C.  Also, sweets, especially chocolate, should be stored away from strongly fragrant foods, because chocolate is very susceptible to surrounding scents. Cookies (also sweets) should be protected from moisture, as they may lose their crunchy properties. At home, it is worth keeping cookies in a sealed package or in a bowl with a lid.

Our supply chain is checked and safe

Increasing population numbers and climate change, which are becoming more and more apparent, are increasing the pressure on our natural resources. We see our responsibility to cooperate with suppliers who produce sustainably, considering our nature, animals and workforce. We see that the production of raw materials such as cocoa and palm oil can pose major social and environmental challenges. We therefore work closely with our suppliers to deal with these problems. We use only certified cocoa and palm oil to produce our sweets.

In addition to food safety, we assess all our suppliers in terms of sustainability and expect them to follow the Orkla Supplier Code of Conduct on Workers’ Rights, Occupational Health and Safety, Environmental Welfare, Fair Business and Corporate Governance. By 2025, we plan to achieve that our sweets use only a more demonstrably sustainable and traceable production of all our key raw materials: cocoa, palm oil, sugar, dairy products, nuts and eggs. We also do not use the eggs of caged chickens at the Kalev plant.

Our focus is on people

Orkla is an important employer for more than 21,000 employees operating in nearly 30 countries. In Estonia, we provide work to 500-700 employees, depending on seasonal needs. We are responsible for the health and safety of our employees and we observe that everyone’s human rights (freedom of expression, freedom of organisation and the right to fair working conditions) are respected. We conduct a thorough employee satisfaction survey and, based on the results, prepare action plans for alleviating concerns. Every year, we invest significantly in the development of our employees’ professional knowledge, occupational safety and management skills. We consider it important to develop a psychologically secure working environment, which is why we train employees to build good relations between themselves, solve working conflicts effectively and prevent bullying at work.

We care about what happens to our packaging

For the purpose of keeping the environment clean and collecting packaging, we are among the members of the Estonian Recycling Organisation (ETO). Through ETO, we are one of the shareholders of RP Pakend OÜ. This non-profit company is involved in collecting, sorting, valuing and reselling packaging waste for recycling purposes. For this purpose, packaging containers have been installed in public collection centres, into which everyone can bring their packaging, which is the collected, sorted and later recycled. RP Packaging collects packaging from public containers as well as from the Kalev plant.

We engage in versatile sponsorship activities

Over the years, Kalev has supported many different areas. At the moment, our sponsorship activities are primarily focused on two areas: sport and culture. 

In sports, our main focus is on supporting young and talented future generations. We consider it important to promote activeness habits among young people, and that is why we are the main sponsor of the TV 10 Olümpiastarti series, which is a competition series unique in the world. In addition, we support a number of major running competitions, among others the charity race Teatejooks, where over 12,000 primary school students from all over Estonia are running in support of children with reduced mobility.

We are also honoured to support the development of Estonian national culture in cooperation with the Estonian National Opera. Our partnership is in some ways expected – just as Estonia is the flagship of Estonian national culture, Kalev can be considered the equivalent in the food industry.

The Kalev brand and production rely on caring people and an organisation that takes responsibility for their operations. Therefore, Orkla has joined EU Pledge, the voluntary initiative of the leading food and beverage companies of Europe, the aim of which is to limit marketing of sweets to young children. As a responsible brand, Kalev does not use its sweets to sponsor events the target groups of which area mostly children under the age of 13. We want to contribute to the promotion of a balanced diet, increasing awareness among children and youth, and decreasing obesity in the Estonian society. 

Just like companies, individuals can do a lot for the environment. We can bring an environmentally friendly mindset to our every day and inspire others around us. Every step is important, and in the end, a more nature-friendly way of life also works well for our own body and mind.

Starting from 2022, Kalev has been using the new slogan A Piece of Good with which we would like to point out that excessive consumption is not good – a piece is enough to get a sweet experience.