In celebration of Earth Day on 22nd April, we’re shining a light on how we’re investing in our planet via energy saving solutions, to reduce our carbon emissions.
Steps we've taken
Taking responsibility for our carbon emissions and contribution to the climate crisis is critical. While we have measured our direct carbon emissions from our operations for many years, in 2022 we also started collecting our Scope 3 emissions to gain better visibility of our total carbon footprint. We’re now working on our Net Zero transition plans, which we look forward to disclosing later this year.
As we make progress on this longer-term pathway, we were keen to set an interim target to get us moving in the right direction, this is to:
We have collaborated with specialist consultants on energy waste and water audits at both our UK and US facilities to set our incremental targets and inform our Net Zero transition.
This has helped us identify opportunities for improvements across energy, waste, and water efficiency.
In the US at our Florida facility, we are exploring renewable energy opportunities, and focussing on energy reduction to bring it more in line with our UK facility which utilises 100% renewable electricity. Some initial projects include upgrades to our compressed air equipment and improving insulation to pipework.
In the UK, energy and environmental considerations were integral in the design of our new UK Headquarters based in Bury St Edmunds. Designed to a Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM), it achieved a rating of ‘very good’. This denotes a newly built commercial building that creates a positive environmental and social impact. Many efficiencies feature throughout our new UK facility, ranging from lighting and the thermal efficiency of materials to the incorporation of a building management system and a HVAC system (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning). We will make a full evaluation of energy efficiencies on completion of the move, alongside opportunities to improve derived from our recent audit.
What’s next?
We discussed what’s next with our Global Sustainability Manager, Katie Severn.
“Addressing climate change is a key priority, fundamental to our sustainability strategy. These investments in our facilities demonstrate the actions we have been and continue to take in the short term. Setting targets and determining larger projects to reduce emissions further as we navigate our pathway to Net Zero leaves us confident in our approach. We believe transparency and working collectively both as a business, and as a wider industry is essential to this journey.
Alongside ensuring our stakeholders are taken on this journey with us, we’ll be ‘wearing it wild’, by dressing as wild animals to celebrate Earth Day, gathering donations for WWF and raising awareness with our community, highlighting projects from around the world where restoration and conservation are seeing a revival of endangered species.”
We intend to create impact for the long term; ensuring we have a sustainable business that minimises its impact on the planet.
Find out more
To learn more about how we’re working hard to create extracts and ingredients people love, in a way that protects people, and our planet, visit the sustainability section of our website.