The controversial organic compounds used in industrial refrigeration technology, hydroflurocarbon (HFC) refrigerants, could soon be a thing of the past as more than 400 international companies have vowed to gradually eliminate them.
HFCs are potent greenhouse gasses whose atmospheric concentrations are rapidly increasing, stirring international debate over their increasing contribution to global warming.
Among the companies that have agreed to cut the use of HFCs are Coca-Cola, Kraft, Nestle and Tesco, as well as many other consumer goods manufacturers that utilise HFCs in their refrigeration technology, according to Reuters.
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) website says “all HFCs have an ozone-depletion potential” and that, next to mobile air conditioning, commercial refrigeration is the second-highest emitter of HFCs.
