September 16, 2019. BWG Foods has announced a major €11 million sustainability investment programme aimed at significantly decreasing the environmental footprint of its large-scale nationwide supply chain.
As part of the investment initiative, BWG Foods has become the first FMCG group in the country to launch a fleet of compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles following an initial investment of more than €2 million in 14 new trucks along with supporting infrastructure, the wholesale and retail group said in a statement.
Speaking following a fact-finding walking tour of BWG Food’s National Distribution Centre, Fianna Fáil Leader Micheál Martin said: “It’s very encouraging to see a major business like BWG Foods take a leadership position across industry with this exciting investment programme which will significantly reduce the business’ environmental impact.
The Group, which has partnered with Gas Networks Ireland around the initiative, has plans to extend its investment in CNG vehicles by an additional €6 million for a further 50 vehicles by 2025 as part of its wider supply chain sustainability programme.
“I hope other companies will be encouraged by this decision and will take steps to follow suit by making meaningful changes that will help protect our environment in the fight against climate change.”
The group stated that its new vehicles, which use natural gas as the most environmentally friendly fossil fuel, are currently generating C02 savings of up to 22% per truck. Each of BWG Foods’ new trucks will complete approximately 120,000 kilometers over the next 12 months, with each truck saving 7.5 tones of CO2 emissions in the process, it said.
When biogas becomes available for use, BWG Foods projects that CO2 emissions from its new delivery fleet will decrease by approximately 90 percent compared with today’s levels.
BWG Foods operates one of the largest delivery fleets in the country with approximately 280 vehicles, which combined cover over 25 million kilometers per year.
