Sustainability

The renunciation of fossil products to protect the climate is one of the greatest challenges of our time. The introduction of CO₂ certificates in Europe demonstrates the political will to promote a sustainable economy. More and more sustainable products are being developed that partially or completely dispense with fossil raw materials. However, this raises the question of how much renewable carbon these products actually contain or whether the consumer is being deceived.

To clarify this question, the analysis of radioactive carbon (¹⁴C), known as the radiocarbon method, is used. Agroisolab is one of the few laboratories worldwide that is accredited for this method.

Radiocarbon method

The basic principle of the radiocarbon method is simple: cosmic radiation constantly produces radioactive carbon dioxide (¹⁴C), which enters the food chain via plants and is detectable everywhere in nature. This natural radioactive level makes it possible to differentiate between fossil and bio-based raw materials, as fossil raw materials no longer contain ¹⁴C isotopes. This method can be used to precisely quantify the proportion of bio-based carbon in products.

Areas of application

Agroisolab quantifies the bio-based carbon in a wide range of products, including plastics, flavourings, chemical products, food (e.g. vinegar) and carbon dioxide (e.g. fermentation carbon dioxide, industrial flue gas). Various standards to verify biobased carbon are available now and are used routinely in the laboratory.