Retailers, suppliers and designers are driving sustainability standards, both in store and in their communities.
Here are a few recent notable examples of how retailers and manufacturers are driving the green transition in Ireland.
Certa Opens Ireland’s First HVO Biofuel Station
Fuel supplier Certa, which is part of DCC plc, has become the first operator in Ireland to open a fully fledged HVO fuel station, as it pursues a new strategy to make the fossil-free biofuel, which is a renewable alternative to diesel, more widely available to motorists. Certa’s new ‘Forecourt of the Future’ – in Liffey Valley – cost over €1 million to build and is the first in Ireland to make hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) available at all pumps, alongside diesel and unleaded petrol. Certa has already started to upgrade its network of 41 unmanned, pay-at-pump forecourts to do this. The first of the newly upgraded forecourts are scheduled to open in Clarehall, Clearwater, Ballymount, Ashbourne and Drogheda before the end of the year. Certa plans to complete the upgrading of its entire network by the end of 2024.
Certa has also become the first fuel supplier in Ireland to present HVO pricing on its forecourt totems. It is currently matching the price of HVO with diesel at its new forecourt in Liffey Valley, and the company notes that it is committed to achieving future price parity.
Certa is also rolling out a plan that will enable its entire network of 41 forecourts to generate their own power from solar energy, following its recent acquisition of solar- and renewable-energy specialists Alternative Energy Ireland. Solar PV panels have already been installed at five of its forecourts, including 66 at the newly opened Certa forecourt in Liffey Valley, to help power the site.
Read More: Musgrave Rolls Out Hydro-Treated Vegetable Oil Fuel Across Truck Fleet
Read More: Circle K Ireland’s Delivery Fleet To Be Fuelled By 100% HVO Renewable Diesel
Retailers Redistribute Food With Olio
Since November 2021, Olio has been working with Irish food businesses like Tesco, Iceland, Applegreen, Fallon & Byrne and more, rescuing unsold food and sharing it with members of the Irish community. Together, they have saved over one million meals from the bin! Keeping one million meals out of the bin is the equivalent of planting 83,000 trees or taking six million car miles off the road. Most importantly, these meals have helped to feed over 6,000 households that might otherwise have struggled to access that food.
Olio matches local businesses with food safety-trained volunteers, who come to your locations to collect any edible food that might be destined for the bin that day. The volunteers then take this food back to their homes and list items on the Olio app, so people living nearby can request and collect it. By redistributing extra food instead of putting it in the bin, Olio’s retail partners have massively reduced the amount of food waste that they generate – at the same time as giving back to their local communities (and even cutting back on bin fees)!
There is still a long way to go – over one million tonnes of edible food is wasted in Ireland every year, while 450,000 people struggle in food poverty. Keen to get involved? Get in touch with the Olio team to start sharing more and wasting less. The company can be contacted at [email protected] or you can share your details with the team via the olioapp.com website.
Read More: Tesco Ireland Partners With Olio To Redistribute Surplus Food From Stores
Coca-Cola Moves To 100% Recycled Plastic In Ireland
Coca-Cola, in partnership with its strategic bottling partner, Coca-Cola HBC, recently announced that all plastic bottles across its soft-drink portfolio in Ireland and Northern Ireland are now made with 100% recycled plastic. The new 100% recycled plastic bottles, which are also 100% recyclable, will be used across the full range of Coca-Cola products, such as Coca-Cola Original Taste and Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, and other beverage brands owned by the company, including Fanta and Sprite.
According to the soft-drink giant, over €20 million has been invested in the last number of years in developing sustainable packaging solutions through the enhancement of the Coca-Cola HBC plant at Knockmore Hill, Lisburn, and in the purchase of recycled plastic material in that period.
“As the bottling partner for the Coca-Cola Company, we have accelerated the move to sustainable packaging, ensuring that Ireland remains one step ahead of the global targets by incorporating more recycled material in our packaging,” said Davide Franzetti, general manager, Coca-Cola HBC Ireland and Northern Ireland.
“The shift to using 100% recycled plastic in our bottles will help eliminate 7,100 tonnes of virgin plastic from circulation annually and, in conjunction with the introduction of a deposit return scheme – DRS – will also support our move towards ensuring all of our bottles are used, recovered, recycled and reused, again and again.”
Read More: Reusable Packaging Could Cut Emissions From Plastics By Up To 69%: Study
