Leapfrog

Reducing the carbon footprint of an electronic educational game

Leapfrog is a leading international developer of educational toys and games which provide an interactive learning experience for children. The company was keen to understand the impact its products have on the environment, to identify its key carbon hotspots and how efficiency improvements could be made. The products are manufactured and packaged in Asia and transported to regional distribution centres and big retailers in the US.

Between 2010 and 2011 Leapfrog took action to reduce the carbon footprint of the packaging of its electronic game Leapfrog Explorer and the software cartridge used in this game. Best Foot Forward carried out a full life cycle assessment of the game and the cartridge from cradle to grave and compared the carbon footprint of each, before and after the improvements had been made.  

The changes Leapfrog had made to the Explorer game meant its packaging footprint was reduced by 19%, and its total carbon footprint was reduced by 2.5%. The weight of the packaging was cut by 15%, and the plastic case of the software cartridge was replaced with a cardboard pack. The improvements led to huge financial savings in packaging  and shipping costs.

Best Foot Forward also recommended how Leapfrog could build on this work by looking across its supply chain and product range to make further environmental and cost savings. For example, by making better use of web services, improvements in energy efficiency and further lightweighting of products and packaging.