Eco-Shop initiatives in more Greggs stores

Greggs will be introducing features from its Eco-Shop format into 400 stores by the end of 2023, as part of a raft of milestones to reach their sustainability goals.

The Eco-Shop was initially launched in Northampton in July 2022, to trial a number of initiatives to reduce the environmental impact of their stores. They include recyclable flooring, cistern-less and air-assisted toilets, ecoovens, heat pump air curtains and solar control glass.

A select number of elements are now being rolled out across existing Greggs stores, totalling close to 250 –around 10% of shops. Greggs aims to introduce features in 400 shops by the end of next year.

The company is nearing the halfway point of its five-year sustainability plan, alongside its 10 commitments in The Greggs Pledge. Other initiatives include:

● Opened 789 Breakfast Clubs, feeding over 49,000 children every school day – with a target of 850 this year.

● Reduced manufacturing food waste by 10% (as a percentage of sales) and increased food redistribution of unsold food in outlets by a further 10%.

● Aligning to the goals of the Paris Agreement, Greggs have set near-term science-based emissions reduction targets.

Roisin Currie, Greggs CEO, said: “When we first launched The Greggs Pledge, we committed to being transparent about – and accountable for – the areas where we believe we could drive the most change in making the world a better place. I am pleased to report that we are on track to meet each one of our targets that we set out to achieve by the end of 2025, making us a stronger and better business.

“As we look to the year ahead, we are in a strong position to continue to make significant progress,” Currie continued. “As a responsible business, Greggs is very much upheld by the values outlined in our Pledge.”

Further goals for 2023 include 30% of all new created products being ‘Healthy Choice’, at least 98% of electricity usage to come from renewable sources, and the opening of 38 Outlet shops (up from 30 in 2022), providing affordable food in areas of social deprivation. For more on Greggs, turn to page six.