“Like many small businesses, we do a lot [for the environment], but hadn’t actually brought that action together under clear goals,” said Ian Stevenson, Bakergoodchild operations director.
He told Printweek that aiming for carbon neutrality had provided an excellent starting point for the company’s sustainability strategy, bringing together data from across the business to central control.
“We’re now able to determine our current usage, and obviously gain [carbon] neutral status off the back of it [by offsetting].
“But it’s now given us the ability to set clear goals and understand how we can reduce our usage across the board, whether that’s in energy usage, fuel consumption, transportation, or recycling, so it’s a really good thing for the business.”
Offsetting 237 tons of carbon dioxide through Carbon Neutral Britain’s international carbon offsetting projects, the company has supported reforestation on degraded land in Uruguay and Costa Rica, mangrove restoration in Pakistan, and the building of wind power infrastructure in Karnataka.
All offsetting projects are certified by Verra, Gold Standard or the United Nations’ Certified Emissions Reductions programme, and are selected on merit of their positive impact on both environment and local society.
Bakergoodchild also carbon balances all its paper stocks through Antalis’ partnership with the World Land Trust.
Stevenson added that while Bakergoodchild has ISO 14001 certification, the data gathered under the carbon neutral programme had taken its environmental capabilities “to the next level”.
“We’re on the journey now, so I’m looking at B-Corp to see if that’s something we want to pursue. It’s not a case of just stopping with [carbon neutrality],” he said.
“Sustainability is something our customers constantly ask us about, and just from telling them that we have [carbon neutral] status, we’ve received positive feedback – because ultimately, it helps them when they’re talking to their customers as well.”
Following its certification, the company will continue to reduce emissions in line with best practice, and will look to set achievable decarbonisation goals according to the data it has gathered through the scheme.
“Carbon neutral has given us the foundation from which we can kick off,” Stevenson said.
“It’s not the end, it’s the start. This month we’re about to start tracking the energy usage of devices across the business, so we can start to make educated decisions about which devices to use, based on energy consumption.”
Connor Sadik, Bakergoodchild sales director, added: “Achieving Carbon Neutral certification is a proud moment for all of us at Bakergoodchild.
“It reflects not just our commitment to sustainability, but the concrete actions we’re taking to reduce our environmental impact. As the industry continues to evolve, we believe it's essential that print and mail providers lead by example – and we’re fully committed to being part of that change.”
