Energy
With rising global temperatures and atmospheric carbon dioxide levels, and energy prices being pushed up by dwindling reserves and supply issues, our need to reduce consumption increases year on year. As a responsible retailer, the Partnership aims to use energy as efficiently as possible. Since 2001 we have publicly reported energy consumption and efficiency and we have set ourselves challenging performance improvement targets.
- Energy procurement costs the Partnership over £36 million every year and energy prices have seen dramatic increases in recent years.
- We are a growing business and more shops and longer trading hours will increase our energy demands.
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Targets and performance
Our target was to improve the energy efficiency of our shops by 20 per cent by 2010 (per square foot of trading floor area, based on 2003-04 baseline). In 2009-10 we met and exceeded this target; our shop energy efficiency improved by 22 per cent in Waitrose and 23 per cent in John Lewis compared to 2003-04.
The Partnership's efforts to be more energy efficient and to reduce emissions supported its application for the Carbon Trust Standard, which the Partnership received in June 2010 following the third-party audit by the Carbon Trust Standard Company.
View energy efficiency data.
Key initiatives to improve energy efficiency
The Partnership is working with the Carbon Trust, a Government-funded organisation that helps companies to improve energy efficiency, reduce emissions and develop commercially viable low-carbon technologies. For example, they helped us to develop an Energy Awareness Manual, Saving Carbon and Cutting Costs, which we distributed to all shops. The publication features '10 ways to save,' from switching off display and sales floor lighting outside trading hours to closing external doors in warehouses. Our Partners have a critical role to play in helping us to meet our environmental targets, so the Manual is a key Partner-focused educational tool. Access to 'real-time' energy use data allows Energy Champions in each shop to monitor energy use, and work with maintenance teams to overcome heavy or erratic energy consumption.
During 2009, we recommissioned the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HvAC) systems, lighting and refrigeration in 75 per cent of our existing Waitrose shops, optimising their operation and raising awareness of the benefits of managing our engineering systems; we plan to continue this and do the same in John Lewis during 2010. We also support the annual promotion of World Environment Day, encouraging Partners to make small lifestyle changes to protect the environment.
In John Lewis, we are replacing tens of thousands of old halogen display lights with more efficient, ceramic metal halide alternatives. Both John Lewis and Waitrose are also supportive of calls by Government to phase out sales of conventional light bulbs and we are promoting energy-efficient lamps. All the own-brand white electrical goods, excluding tumble dryers, we sell have an energy efficiency rating of 'A' or above.
Reducing the impact of refrigeration in Waitrose
Monitoring energy use closely in our shops helps us to see where and how energy is used. In Waitrose, for example, more than 60 per cent of energy is used to refrigerate food. With this information we can target our energy improvement programmes towards refrigeration.
Waitrose has made significant investments in upgrading refrigeration units in new and exisiting shops. As part of this investment we have replaced some open upright freezers with cabinets with glass doors and installed flexible doors on all our walk-in coldrooms, or night blinds to retain cool air. As a result of this investment, Waitrose no longer uses chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) as a refrigerant and is in the advanced stages of removing all hydro-chlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), and we will be complete well before the 2010 legal phase-out deadline. Although the shift from HCFCs to hydro-fluorocarbons (HFCs) has removed the ozone depletion potential, HFCs do have a higher global warming potential if released in the event of refrigeration failure. The carbon dioxide equivalent effect from the release of refrigerant gases into the atmosphere represents approximately 16 per cent of the total carbon footprint of the Partnership. As a food retailer, Waitrose refrigeration of chilled products is the biggest source of these emissions.
We have now set a target for a 50 per cent reduction in carbon dioxide equivalent emissions resulting from refrigerant losses in Waitrose by 2012 (relative to a 2008 baseline). This target demonstrates the importance we are placing on refrigerant gas containment and our commitment to reducing our environmental impact by improving the efficiency of our operations. Over three years a 50 per cent reduction will be achieved by introducing a leak reduction programme - requiring a considerable industry change - together with the replacement of very high global warming potential refrigerants with new, lower global warming potential refrigerants, where possible in our existing estate. For example, as a result of extensive development and trials, we have launched a new refrigeration system utilising a very low global warming potential natural refrigerant. The first branch to utilise this new system was Waitrose Altrincham (opened in October 2009). Following on from this, all new and major refitted Waitrose branches will utilise this new approach.
In two other Waitrose branches, Wallingford and Monmouth, a novel way of detecting refrigeration leaks is being trialled - the addition of cherry Bakewell scent to HFCs to help 'sniff out' leaks. If this trial proves successful it will be rolled out to more shops in future to help ensure leaks are kept to an absolute minimum while Waitrose works through its shops phasing out the use of HFCs.
To date, we have reduced average CO2 emissions from direct refrigeration and cooling from 453 tonnes per shop to 336 tonnes. This is a 26% reduction in relative terms, and an absolute reduction of 16%. In recognition of our industry-leading work to cut refrigeration emissions Waitrose topped the Environmental Investigation Agency's 2010 'Chilling Facts' survey in recognition . Read more about this achievement.
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Green energy sources
Improving our energy efficiency will reduce carbon dioxide emissions but it will not avoid them. The Partnership believes that using energy from green sources (sources other than fossil fuels) will provide a more sustainable alternative. All of the Partnership's electricity now comes from fully green sources, through an agreement with its energy supplier and in Southampton, John Lewis is sourcing heat from the local geothermal district heating scheme (energy partly derived from naturally occurring underground heat). Solar thermal energy can also be economic on a new build and is being actively considered for new Waitrose shops, while biomass boilers, which burn woodchip, are being considered for our new distribution centre and farm. Going further in the search for green energy sources, Waitrose Rickmansworth is able to source energy from a combined heat and power (CHP) scheme on a tomato farm and John Lewis Cardiff to receive power from a waste recycling plant.
We are also actively supporting research into new renewable technologies and programmes to commercialise the availability of renewable energy. Waitrose is one of the primary commercial sponsors of Thames Valley Energy (TV Energy), an agency formed to stimulate, encourage and facilitate the development of renewable resources in the Thames Valley area.
The Partnership has also investigated on-site renewable energy generation and as a result we installed wind turbines and solar panels at the Leckford Estate, where they are used to harness energy for rearing free-range poultry. In 2004 we planted more than 40 acres of short rotation coppice (willow) at Leckford. The planting scheme is a member of the first Government-funded Producer Group on Biofuels and provides wood fuel for regional renewable power generators. The coppice also provides shelter for 12,000 free range egg laying Columbian Blacktail Chickens, now on sale in Waitrose branches.
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Our plans/key priorities
- Continue to improve energy efficiency to contribute to our wider aim to deliver absolute reductions in our carbon emissions.
- Continue to source 100 per cent of our electricity from green sources and consider all forms of renewable energy for our shops and head offices.
- Deliver a 50 per cent reduction in carbon dioxide equivalent emissions resulting from refrigerant losses in Waitrose.
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