We’re excited to announce that the team at Cranswick Continental Foods in Bury has taken the first steps in becoming a Net Zero business, by achieving Carbon Neutral specification to PAS 2060 Standard.
This key milestone means that the site has minimised carbon emissions while introducing an approved emission reduction plan to ensure the continued reduction of its carbon footprint. To offset remaining emissions, investment has been made into verified conservation and reforestation projects.
The team has also been upskilled with CPD certified training, which has enabled them to develop forward-looking and climate smart carbon reduction strategies.
REDUCING CARBON TO DATE
From the baseline year of 2017/2018, the team has undertaken several projects to cut emissions including:
- Moving into the sustainably designed Bury facility has allowed Cranswick Continental to increase production while reducing emissions through outstanding energy and refrigerant efficiency, as well as low overall levels of emissions intensity at only 11.3kg of CO2 per tonne of product sold
- Investing in REGO certified renewable energy, as opposed to carbon-intensive energy sources, has allowed the site to cut out electricity emissions.
REALISING CARBON NEUTRALITY
Mike Palmer, the site director of Cranswick Continental Food, said: “We import continental specialities including charcuterie, olives and antipasti; and then at our site in Bury further process to add value and provide convenient solutions for the UK consumer. Due to the nature of the site, we have a naturally smaller footprint compared to some other food manufacturing sites – however, I do not think we should underestimate how much the investment into such a state of the art facility has helped ensure we have a low emissions profile. We’re now looking at how we can apply our new Net Zero lens onto our products and reduce our impact further by working with some of our key suppliers."
In line with the long term goal of becoming net zero, the site now has an approved emission reduction plan to further decrease the 172 tonnes of carbon emissions still being produced. In the meantime, the team is investing in projects that will remove the equivalent amount of carbon from the atmosphere. These carbon offsets take the sites carbon footprint to zero, and the projects have been strategically chosen by the team to not only combat climate change but also support communities through being aligned to specific UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
1. Southern Cardamom REDD+ in Cambodia. Validated by Verra and CCB Biodiversity Gold Standard, this project protects 497,000 hectares of tropical rainforest in South-West Cambodia, which is globally significant for wildlife conservation, ecosystem servicing, and community livelihoods. The project is in an area of extreme importance for biodiversity conservation, which safeguards more than 50 species of mammals, bird and reptiles, all considered “Threatened” or “Near Threatened” according to the IUCN Red List. They use global best practices of forest protection and community development to preserve the rainforest, as well as combat the root cause of deforestation in the area, a lack of education, job opportunities, and ultimately poverty. This initiative is advancing the following SDGs: Goal 3 Good Health and Wellbeing, Goal 4 Quality Education, Goal 5 Gender Equality, Goal 8 Decent Wages & Economic Growth Goal 12 Responsible Consumption & Production, Goal 13 Climate Action, and Goal 15 Life on Land.
This project prevents more than 3,000,000 tons of carbon emissions annually, with the Cranswick Continental Foods contribution offsetting 172 tonnes of carbon.
2. Doddington North Moor in the UK – part of the Woodland Carbon Code, and the largest planned woodland reforestation project in England in the last 25 years. The forest will cover an area of around 354 hectares in Northumberland, with 268 hectares of mixed forest to be planted. The productive woodland will be managed to maintain it in the long-term, through removing some trees to let light through the canopy, as well as provide sustainably sourced wood. This initiative is advancing the following SDGs: Goal 13 Climate Action, Goal 12 Responsible Consumption & Production and Goal 15 Life on Land.
The reforestation project will allow 101,988 trees to be planted and capture around 92,670 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent greenhouse gas emissions over a 65 year period, with the Cranswick Continental Food contribution offsetting an additional 45 tonnes of carbon.
What’s next?
With CPD Net Zero accredited colleagues and the approved emission reduction path, the team is making strides towards reaching the Net Zero by 2040 goal. A diverse range of energy efficiency measures and upgrades over the next one to five years include:
- Conducting a lifecycle analysis of their products to gain insights on further emission reduction opportunities across the whole value chain
- Exploring opportunities to invest further in carbon removal projects, to go above and beyond simply remaining carbon neutral and achieving a carbon negative footprint, by removing more CO2 from the atmosphere than is produced in their operations.
The team at Continental join Cranswick Country Foods Ballymena, Cranswick Convenience Foods Milton Keynes, Cranswick Gourmet Pastry in Malton and Cranswick Country Foods at Riverside, who have all achieved carbon neutrality.