A HoMaBiLe project in friendly collaboration with the Ohm in the EU project FOODCoST

The “Wahre Kosten” campaign week from 31 July - 5 August 2023 is a joint initiative of the grocer, PENNY/Rewe, and two research projects at the Ohm and the University of Greifswald. It focuses on the environmental costs associated with product manufacturing. During the campaign, the “true costs” for nine selected products will be released in all PENNY markets in Germany.

"Wahre Kosten” [True costs] Our cooperation with PENNY

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A progression from the information campaign “PENNY Grüner Weg” that took place in 2020: In the “Wahre Kosten” campaign in 2023, PENNY has set the “true prices” for nine products in all German affiliates (over 2,000 stores). These “true prices” comprise the regular sale price and the surcharge for the true costs of the environmental impact, which we calculated. The surplus revenue and an additional 50,000 euros will benefit the “Zukunftsbauer” project, which aims to increase energy efficiency in agricultural businesses.

The monetisation of damage caused to the climate and environment for the selected food products were calculated based on the publications of Pieper et al. (2020) and Michalke et al. (2023) and include the categories of soil, climate, water, and health.

The campaign also provides information about the differences between conventional and organic cultivation as the first campaign did. This time, however, a stronger focus on selected store-brand animal products and a vegan product. Based on the calculations, our team obtained the finding: the true cost component of the plant-based product is distinctly lower than that of the animal products. The subsequent environmental costs of organically produced products are lower than those of conventional products, but both cultivation models caused externalities.

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Overview of the nine Penny store-brands under study

Product	Cultivation model	Package size	Sale price	True cost per package	True costs price	Surcharge
Naturgut organic fruit yogurt	Organic	400g	1.19 €	0.37 €	1.56 €	31%
Naturgut sliced cheese*	Organic	ca. 190g	2.19 €	1.51 €	3.70 €	69%
Naturgut organic mozzarella	Organic	200g	1.29 €	0.63 €	1.92 €	49%
Naturgut organic sausages*	Organic	ca. 190g	3.29 €	2.07 €	5.36 €	63%
PENNY “Zukunftsbauer” fruit yogurt*	Convent.	450g	1.19 € / 0.99** €	0.45 €	1.64 €	38% / 45%
Lindenhof Maasdamer cheese	Convent.	300g	2.49 €	2.35 €	4.84 €	95%
San Fabio mozzarella	Convent.	200g	0.89 €	0.66 €	1.55 €	74%
Mühlenhof Wiener sausages	Convent.	400g	3.19 €	2.82 €	6.01 €	88%
Food For Future Schnitzel	Vegan	200g	2.69 €	0.14 €	2.83 €	5%

*Mixed box **Sale price can vary by region

The “Zukunftsbauer” project is a cooperation between PENNY and the Berchtesgadener Land dairy which supports the farmers in the dairy cooperative for climate-friendly agriculture. The surplus revenue from the campaign will therefore contribute to increasing energy efficiency in agricultural businesses.

FAQs

From 31 July - 5 August 2023, nine products will be sold reflecting their “true costs” in all German PENNY stores. This is a temporary promotion that stems from a collaborative relationship between PENNY and researchers at the University Greifswald and the Ohm that has been established since 2020 – and benefits the environment.

Foundational research

On this page, members of the media can find all relevant information to the “Wahre Kosten” project: images and text materials, information briefs about the project, current press releases, etc.

Logos in usual sizes and graphic formats are available in the “Pressematerialien” file. If you require other files, please feel free to contact us. A selection of photos for press purposes are available for download. Please feel free to contact us, if you need further photo materials. We’ll be pleased to assist you.

Contacts

Name: Prof. Tobias Gaugler, Dr. Amelie Michalke

Email: infoatwahre-preisePunktde