Bord Bia Awards: Sustainability category

The Bord Bia Food and Drink Awards are designed to recognise and reward excellence in the Irish food and drinks industry. The finalists in the sustainability category: Dawn Meats; Glenisk; and Bewley’s, are profiled here

DAWN MEATS

Background
Dawn Meats was founded by three farming families in Co Waterford in 1980, at a time when there was a shortage of deboning and meat-processing capacity in the area. The company, which is still a family business, provides meat and meat products to customers in more than 40 countries worldwide. Employing more than 2,400 people, it guarantees complete traceability along the supply chain from "farm to fork".

Sustainability
Sustainability is an integral part of the culture at Dawn Meats. In recent years they have formalised this approach in conjunction with Bord Bia's Origin Green programme, to ensure their strategic business plans support sustainable development. Dawn Meats has set a number of demanding targets and commitments as part of its Origin Green sustainability charter. In early 2013, the company doubled its original improvement targets, due to the success of their ongoing environmental sustainability initiatives. Dawn Meats is now aiming to reduce water use by 40 per cent, reduce energy consumption by 40 per cent and to reduce its direct carbon footprint by 50 per cent.


GLENISK

Background
Established in 1987, Glenisk is a Co Offaly-based, family run producer of organic dairy and goats' milk products. The company switched to organic production in 1995, and now works with 50 small family farms across Ireland. Committed to fair trade and ensuring organic production is sustainable, Glenisk pays farmers a premium for their organic milk and procures most of the organic milk produced on the island of Ireland. The company has in tripled its market share since 2008 and how holds more than 12 per cent of the total yogurt market.


Sustainability
Glenisk became a full verified member of the Origin Green programme in January 2013. The organisation has developed a five-year sustainability plan detailing its goals and initiatives to reduce environmental impact in four main target areas: energy, emissions, waste, and water. The company aims to use 100 per cent renewable energy for heat/steam generation by 2017, to reduce water use by five per cent per year until 2017, to become a carbon-neutral manufacturing facility and to have zero waste to landfill or incineration by 2017.



BEWLEY'S

Background
Established in 1840, Bewley's is the largest and most recognised tea and fresh coffee brand in Ireland. Forming part of the Campbell Bewley group, its core business is the provision of fresh coffee, tea and related hot beverage solutions to foodservice and retail outlets in Ireland and the UK. The company is the largest coffee roaster in Ireland, processing over 3,000 tonnes of coffee and employing more than 170 at its facility in Dublin.

Sustainability
In March 2013, Bewleys became a member of the Origin Green programme. Based on its origins as a Quaker-owned company, Bewley's have always been committed to working in a sustainable and positive manner with both the natural environment and the community. Their sustainability strategy works across three areas: ethical trading, impact on the environment and community responsibility. Bewley's has converted its entire electricity requirement to renewable power. The move forms part of Bewley's overall commitment to environmental sustainability where the company has become Ireland's first fully certified carbon neutral coffee company.