Showering products specialist Lakes has been awarded Carbon Neutral Plus status as a result of its commitment to reducing its environmental impact.
Lakes was awarded the internationally recognised Carbon Footprint Standard in March 2019 by Carbon Footprint Ltd.
This latest development takes it beyond the Carbon Neutral standard and recognises its efforts to reduce carbon emissions even further by offsetting more CO2 emissions in 2019 than its UK operations generated.
Lakes offset more than half of its CO2 emissions in 2019 by means of tree-planting schemes in Kenya and the UK, including 200 trees at a local school in Gloucester. The company also supported projects to protect the Amazon rainforest, supply water purifiers to Cambodia and clean drinking water in Uganda by improving boreholes.
In its factory, Lakes introduced 100% recyclable packaging, enabling it to prevent 2,000km of banding and nearly two million pieces of polystyrene a year from going to landfill.
Lakes is also committed to recycle all of its product waste – mainly glass and aluminium – and has saved 298 trees from being turned into paper and cardboard through recycling 76% of its waste in the year to date.
Commenting on the company’s achievement, Lakes operations director Mick Evans said: “We are absolutely thrilled to be certified as Carbon Neutral Plus. The sustainability of our business has been a significant focus over the past 18 months and one that we will remain strongly committed to. We’ve introduced big changes in our packaging and processes to reduce waste, and invested in projects, which improve the environment in the UK and further afield.
“There is no planet B, and we all have to go above and beyond to make a difference and lessen the environmental impact we make, while still delivering the high quality products and first class service our customers and partners expect from us.”
Zoe Booth, environmental consultant at Carbon Footprint Ltd, added: “Lakes has taken leading and responsible steps to mitigate the current climate emergency, going above and beyond to offset more CO2 than their UK operations produced.”
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