14 DAY TRIAL // Yesterday, Greggs, i.e. the largest bakery chain in the United Kingdom, announced that it had installed solar panels at 10 of the facilities it owned and operated in the country. The solar panels have a combined energy generating capacity of 1.28MW, and sit on bakery roofs.
According to Greggs, the green energy that they will produce will not chiefly be used for lighting purposes, but to keep the ovens used to make cakes and pastries up and running.
The bakery chain says that, all things considered, its fitting 10 of its facilities with photovoltaic panels will yield three major benefits: it will help reduce yearly carbon emissions, it will reduce electricity costs and it will allow Greggs to benefit from feed-in tariff schemes.
“The installation of PV panels on our bakery roofs provided the perfect opportunity to make use of a previously unused roof space, take advantage of the government's feed-in tariff scheme and generate carbon-neutral electricity for use in the bakeries, and, therefore, reduce the amount of fossil fuel we need to buy and consume,” Stephen Weldon, social responsibility manager at Greggs, explains.
“As a responsible business, we have a duty to manage our energy consumption by becoming more energy efficient in our bakery and retail operations,” he adds.
According to Business Green, the bakery chain also expects that its investments in harvesting solar energy will help improve its image in the public eye.
More precisely, Greggs hopes that, following its buying and installing these photovoltaic panels, its customers will come to see the company as one that cares not just about making a profit, but also about promoting sustainability and protecting the environment.
“Solar PV one of the most reliable renewable energies on the market, with proven technologies operating across the globe. Installation makes a visible and public statement of an organization's sustainable credentials,” Stephen Weldon explains.
The same source tells us that, by the year 2015, the bakery chain aims to reduce its annual carbon emissions by as much as 25%. The installation of these solar panels will surely help it achieve this goal.
In order to further improve on its ecological footprint, Greggs wishes to also up its recycling rates to 90%.