CSR

Corporate Social Responsibility

It's not just our logo that is green

CSR

Corporate Social Responsibility

It's not just our logo that is green

Corporate Social Responsibility

Our Environmental Pledges

It’s not just the logo that is green. At GA, we are committed to earth-friendly manufacturing and minimal environmental impact, so we have set ourselves these ten environmental pledges.

1. FUTURE GENERATIONS

GA will seek to meet the needs of the present by minimising our impact on our environment, so as not to compromise the ability of future generations.

2. NOT TO POLLUTE

We will minimise, and strive to eliminate the release of any pollutant that may cause harm to our land, water, air or the health of our neighbours.

3. SUSTAINABLE USE OF RESOURCES

We will make sustainable use of all renewable natural resources, being the water that falls on our site, organic waste produced within our on-site processes, the soils of our farms and the natural raw materials we use in our products.

We will conserve and reduce non-renewable natural resources through efficient use and careful planning. GA will continue to conserve and improve its local ecology. We will protect our wildlife habitats and preserve the biodiversity of our lands.

4. DISPOSAL OF WASTE

We will minimise the creation of waste, and wherever possible, we will reduce, reuse, recycle and recover all possible materials and seek to prevent any going to landfill.

5. EFFICIENT USE OF ENERGY

We will make every effort and invest to use environmentally safe and sustainable energy sources as we move to a carbon-free energy future.

We will reduce, recover and reuse all possible available energy, in order to maximise the energy efficiency and energy conservation of our operations.

6. HEALTH OF OUR COLLEAGUES AND OUR COMMUNITIES

We will minimise the environmental health and safety risks to all our colleagues and the local communities in which we operate in order to minimise any disturbance due to noise, odour, dust or light.

7. SAFETY OF OUR PRODUCTS

We will ensure that all the products we sell are safe to the owners, and their pets, who consume our food.

8. PERFORMANCE AND AUDIT

We will conduct and make public an annual self-evaluation of our progress in implementing these pledges, by reporting our environmental performance in terms of energy usage, water and waste recovery and ensuring compliance with the planning permissions, and environmental permits that govern our sites.

9. COMMUNICATION

All at GA will work collectively across all departments and with our Partner Brands to ensure in a step by step way that our Pledges are achieved. We will set targets that we can work at together. We will inform our Partner Brands and our colleagues of our progress and how we can continue to work towards a sustainable future.

10. PERFECTION

Perfection is not possible, but definable progress is. Together, GA and its Partner Brands can make a difference and can seek to ensure we have a sustainable future for many generations to come.

BIBAs Green Business Award Winner 2019

The BIBAS are “Be Inspired Business Awards Lancashire”. They are the largest and longest-running business awards programme in Lancashire.

I am pleased to announce that GA Pet Food Partners won the BIBAS awards 2019 for the Green Business of the Year. This was because of the important wastewater treatment, odour abatement, recycling, energy efficiency and ecological work that the team and all colleagues at GA contribute to having minimal impact on our environment. This was achieved by our colleagues putting waste in the correct bins, running of the Wastewater Treatment Works, and GA’s commitments to future water recycling, energy generation, zero waste to landfill by 2025, and zero carbon emissions by 2050.

David Colgan

Environmental and Energy Manager

GA's Corporate Social Responsibility can be seen by our planting of over 20,000 trees and wetland regeneration.

20,000 trees and shrubs planted

We planted 20,000 trees and shrubs across our site from 2016 to 2020 alone. We’ve also improved the riverbank areas surrounding the site and created wetland areas to increase biodiversity, ecology and wildlife. In addition, we have implemented numerous bat and bird boxes.

Corporate Social Responsibility. GA Pet Food Partners use a natural form of pest control with the Horus Bird Of Prey Falcons.

Natural Pest Control

We use specialised Avian Control at Plocks Farm by utilising the expertise of the falconers at Horus Birds Of Prey. This natural, non-invasive way of deterring pests works wonders at scaring off and keeping away various pest species, such as gulls, who are as drawn to the smell of our world’s finest pet food as the pets we feed. Linda and the team use a variety of birds to take to the skies around Plocks Farm to ward off any avian pests and keep the area free from nesting or congregation.

Corporate social responsibility - We recycle and reuse all of our water on-site via our two wastewater treatment works.

Recycle & Reuse

We recycle and reuse all of our water on-site via our two wastewater treatment works.

As part of our Corporate Social Responsibility, our on-site recycling plant works meticulously to separate cardboard, plastic, metal, paper, and other recyclable materials. Today, 98% of all waste generated on-site is recycled. Tomorrow, we are aiming for 100%.

98% Recycling Figure

Our on-site recycling plant works meticulously to separate cardboard, plastic, metal, paper, and other recyclable materials. Today, 98% of all waste generated on-site is recycled. Tomorrow, we are aiming for 100%.

Odour Abatement

We have invested £9 million in our state-of-the-art odour abatement system, which has resulted in a significant reduction in all odours. This is achieved with our five large bio-beds that scrub the air clean before releasing it back into the atmosphere.

Corporate Social Responsibility - Community Engagement

A partnership has been set up between GA Pet Food Partners and Bretherton Endowed C of E Primary School to invest in the local community and provide educational site visits, with pupils recently attending the site on a 'pet food design day'. GA donated 100 bags of pet food for pupils to design the packaging and labelling.

Environmental site visits have also been undertaken, during which pupils learnt how GA operates sustainably to have the lowest environmental impact possible. Working closely with Bretherton Endowed C of E Primary School and other schools in the local area has been a wonderful opportunity for GA to connect with the local community.

Amy Mee, HR Manager, meeting primary school pupils at Bretherton C of E Primary School where she held a workshop and competition for the pupils to design their own bag of pet food, and then took them on a tour of our Manufacturing facilities at Plocks Farm.

Amy Mee, HR Manager, met primary school pupils at Bretherton C of E Primary School, where she held a workshop and competition for the pupils to design their own bag of pet food and then took them on a tour of our Manufacturing facilities at Plocks Farm.