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- Introduction
- Masterplan Vision to CLG 05/09/08
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Our Initiatives
Archive - April 2008
How we already make a difference
Environment
The Group has an exceptional track record of environmental responsibility. In 2007, we were voted Britain’s most ethical company and we received the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in Sustainable Development and the Renewable Energy Association’s Pioneer Award. We also received the Peter Parker Award for Environmental Leadership from Business Commitment to the Environment and we will now represent the UK in the European Environmental Awards. We have a proven ability to deliver cutting edge environmental initiatives across all aspects of our business, from wind farms and farming to retail services and banking.
The Co-operative Group is committed to using low carbon and environmentally clean energy solutions.
We are one of Europe’s largest purchasers of renewable electricity. 98% of the electricity used in our 4500 trading stores is sourced from renewable energy sources, including the Group’s own wind farm in Coldham, Cambridgeshire, which provides over 4% of our total electricity requirement.
Within the Co-operative Group’s own estate we are delivering renewable energy projects. One of our own buildings houses the largest vertical solar panel installation in the UK - CIS Tower in Manchester. Another of our Manchester buildings sources energy from the UK’s largest micro-wind power installation through 19 roof- top micro-wind turbines.
The result of this collective activity has been a reduction of 89% in CO2 emissions from energy consumption in our buildings since 2003.
The Group also runs its own recycling facility based at its Manchester Head Office complex and has pioneered the use of electric delivery vans to transport waste paper from its offices to the recycling centre.
The Co-operative Group is keen to share its knowledge of sustainable energy with schools. We have set up an energy education centre in Cambridgeshire and invested over £1 million in solar energy technology for schools.
The Co-operative Group is also an environmentally ethical organisation. In 2006 our Co-op Bank turned down loans to the value of £26M that were requested by the gas and oil sector. Instead we invested £9M in energy-efficient combined heat and power generators for NHS Trusts and museums.
The local retailing element of our property strategy gives the Group a strong track record in ensuring local facilities are available through public transport, on foot and by cycle.
Our travel business can offset your carbon dioxide emissions from your holiday flights.
Community
Supporting local communities is a crucial co-operative ethos and is at the heart of the co-operative movement and heritage. The Co-operative Group is a consumer co-operative owned by its members and strongly rooted in the community. In 2006, the Group gave £7M (2.2% of pre-tax profits) to community based initiatives. If we were a plc we would be, in percentage terms, in the top five most generous ‘givers’ in the FTSE 100 (The Giving List 2006).
Our community donations are used to support a wide range of programmes including credit counselling and the Group’s pharmacy business health funds. Further donations are made to grassroots sporting initiatives, and in 2007 more than 7,000 staff volunteered to help in their local communities – contributing over 42,000 hours of time and effort.
Over 5,000 primary school children have visited The Co-operative Farms, to spend a day learning where food comes from and hearing about the role that farming can play within the community.
Health
The Co-operative Group’s own sustainability targets include specific aims to improve diet and health.
The Co-operative Farms run a food education project on the Group’s farm estate at Stoughton. The ‘Farm to Fork’ programme is designed to enable children from local primary schools to visit a working farm and learn where their food comes from.
The Group is a sponsor of the ‘walking buses’ initiative - the campaign to encourage children to walk to school in a safe environment as an alternative to the car-based ‘school run’.
We have been at the forefront of challenging suppliers to reduce fat and salt in products and have encouraged more informative food labelling to increase consumer choice. The Group aims to have no genetically modified ingredients in its own-brand foods and is a firm supporter of Sustain, the alliance for better food and farming.