Cranswick’s flagship poultry processing site, Cranswick Country Foods Fresh Poultry, Suffolk, has been awarded PAS 2060 Carbon Neutral status. The certification validates the site’s carbon neutral position and its team’s roadmap for a completely Net Zero site by 2040.
The fresh poultry processing facility in Eye, Suffolk, is the largest of Cranswick's poultry sites and was newly opened in 2019. The PAS 2060 certification recognises the site’s carbon neutral status and validates the team's plan to further reduce emissions, with a commitment to operating as a Net Zero site by 2040. Eye colleagues are fully engaged in minimising the site’s environmental footprint. The site team are fit to deliver, with senior leadership equipped with climate literacy training and the appointment of a governance team to oversee all sustainability projects. Plans to progress to Net Zero include initiatives to add site-generated renewable energy capacity and consideration of challenging Scope 3 emissions.
REDUCING CARBON TO DATE
The new, purpose-built site at Eye opened in late 2019. All efficiency measures were considered when building the factory to ensure it operates to the highest environmental standards.
Initiatives of note include:
A comprehensive effluent treatment plant that reuses water that otherwise would go to treatment. This reduces downstream emissions.
The site has 100% renewable electricity, thus when using a market-based approach, the site has zero emissions from electricity usage. The site is further enhancing this with Rooftop Solar.
DELIVERING CARBON NEUTRALITY
Barry Lock, Managing Director of Cranswick Country Foods Fresh Poultry, Suffolk, highlights his team’s ongoing focus on minimising the site's environmental footprint.
“Our Eye fresh poultry site was purpose-built to meet the highest efficiency and environmental standards. Achieving the PAS 2060 Carbon Neutral status reflects the wide range of sustainable practices hard-wired into our operations and our plan to achieve full Net Zero status by 2040. Our site team are proud of our state-of-the-art facility, yet always looking at how we can do more. Whether it's unlocking production efficiencies, maximising rooftop solar potential or generating energy from our site waste - there’s no corner of operations we’re not addressing. Working in partnership with Crown Farms and Crown Mills we aim to be the model for climate-smart food production in the UK, from farm to fork.”
While the site minimises carbon emissions as much as possible, some unavoidable emissions remain. The remaining carbon impact is offset by strategic projects, selected by site colleagues. Reforestation and clean energy projects in South America and Asia are approved by Verra and align with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to deliver both climate and community benefits. These initiatives are joined by a local reforestation project in Doddington North Moor.
The projects chosen by the Eye site team are:
Portel-Pará REDD Amazon Rainforest Protection Project, Brazil.
This project works to mitigate rainforest deforestation in Brazil, to avert over 22 million tonnes of Carbon Dioxide-equivalent greenhouse gas emissions over a 40 year period. The project manages land as a private conservation reserve with rigorous monitoring and enforcement of standards while also providing support and employment opportunities to the local community. Biodiversity conservation benefits are notable, as the area provides habitat for numerous species, several designated as endangered or vulnerable.
Dak Lak Solar Project, Vietnam.
This Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) project is designed to supply clean solar energy to the national grid of Vietnam, displacing energy which could otherwise be produced by fossil fuels. The project is capable of providing 73,000 megawatt-hours of energy per annum. In addition to the provision of renewable energy, the project supports the local community with sustainable livelihood opportunities and training.
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 to provide sustainably sourced wood. 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 65 years.
WHAT’S NEXT?
The Suffolk Fresh Poultry team have a robust plan to take sustainable operations to the next level, progressing from Carbon Neutral today to Net Zero by 2040. The PAS 2060 certification approves this plan to further decarbonise operations, including:
Rooftop Solar Panels – aim for rooftop solar panels operational by the end of this year, adding additional capacity to reduce reliance on grid fossil fuel power.
CHP installation – The site has commissioned a Combined Heat and Power unit, which will utilise waste heat back into operations.
Anaerobic Digestion feasibility study – to determine the feasibility of the site using waste to generate biogas to power the site CHP unit.
The CPD-trained leadership team will oversee the rollout of these and further sustainability initiatives across the site. They are supported by a committed site team, with internal Changemakers championing key projects.
Beyond the Eye site boundary, Cranswick Country Foods Fresh Poultry, Suffolk, works in partnership with Cranswick’s Crown Farms and Crown Mills agricultural operations. Through their vertically integrated model, they are able to deliver positive sustainability impacts across the value chain. Cranswick farms will be carbon neutral by 2030 and form part of Cranswick’s commitment to be the world’s most sustainable meat business, from farm to fork.
The team at Cranswick Country Foods Fresh Poultry, Suffolk joins Cranswick Country Foods, Preston, Katsouris Brothers Ltd, Cranswick Country Foods, Watton, Cranswick Country Foods Poultry, Hull, Cranswick Convenience Foods Barnsley, Cranswick Convenience Foods Sutton Fields, Cranswick Gourmet Sausage Lazenbys, Cranswick Continental Foods Bury, 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.