Making Strides To Measure & Reduce Our Emissions

Net Zero continues to be the number 1 focus across businesses, politicians, activists and society in general, yet it was evident to us and certainly from our experience, that what to do and how to get there were little understood.

After many years of continuous improvements and actions in the area of sustainability, as an SME we needed some direction and guidance to understand carbon reductions, what scopes 1, 2 and 3 meant and how to calculate our emissions.

TK are heavily involved with The Growth Company, who summarise what they do as an award- winning, accredited, social enterprise with a mission to enable growth, create jobs and improve lives. Their vision is for a society where economic growth and prosperity is inclusive, sustainable and leaves no person or community behind’.

Gaining Knowledge Has Been An Important First Step For Us

We have been involved in a wide variety of initiatives with them, including training programmes for colleagues. Becoming aware of their Net Zero programme, we felt not only receiving guidance from a team of experts, but being able to network with like minded organisations in the local area meant this programme was something we felt we had to register for.

The Growth Company produced a press release where we contributed on our own experiences of the programme:-
Journey to Net Zero programme helps more than 100 businesses take their crucial first steps | GC Business Growth Hub

At a similar time to the programme, we became a member of the SME Climate Hub, aligned to the UN’s Race to Zero, where we were asked to pledge to halve our carbon emissions by 2030 and become fully Net Zero by 2050.

Getting To Grips With Emissions Calculator & Taking Action

With the knowledge and tools equipped, we set off to calculate our emissions across scopes 1, 2 and 3, utilising a product called Normative, specifically designed for SME’s. We decided upon a baseline year of 2018, so we were truly able to see how our actions to date have brought our emissions down, with initiatives such as the move to full LED lighting at our office and warehouse, transferring to a 100% renewable electricity tariff, and the investment in a new combi boiler, which has saved 2.31 tonnes of C02e per annum alone.

Crucially, the carbon calculator produces numbers, it doesn’t ‘do actions’, and the result of the actions delivers the numbers. And this cycle continues, year after year. While scopes 1 & 2 are predominately based on our direct activities, scope 3 is where our extensive supply chain became involved.

Without their input, as a manufacturer and importer of goods, not too much of a dent would be made without the activities of our whole supplier base being involved. We therefore work alongside each and every one of our suppliers- initiatives we have delivered with them in recent times including moving to fully recyclable LDPE04 plastic packaging, PAP20 and in many cases FSC Certified cardboard cartons, the investment in solar power on factory roofes to power machinery, recycled content being used across our product range, and many others.

To continue as a business, over 75 years old so far, we need to sell product. However, in adapting how we manufacture those products, what materials are used (and re-used), and how we transport them from location to location, we can continue to evolve and move towards a net zero output, to protect the planet & its people now and in the future.