OUR NET ZERO JOURNEY SO FAR
At Hannah Turner Ltd., sustainability is at the heart of our operations. We are committed to minimising our environmental impact and actively contributing to a more sustainable future
Our Net Zero Commitment
Recognising the urgency of addressing climate change, we have pledged to achieve Net Zero carbon emissions by 2040, with an interim goal of reducing our emissions by 50% by 2030. To support this commitment, we have partnered with Ecologi, funding the planting of over 450 trees and offsetting nearly 30 tonnes of CO₂ emissions to date.
Below are her notes on this journey so far, a basic one-pager to give an overview of the steps that have been taken, are in progress, and also those completed!
THE START OF THE JOURNEY
Sustainable Production Practices
Understanding that ceramics production is energy-intensive, we are actively seeking ways to reduce our carbon footprint. We have invested in a more energy-efficient kiln and are exploring the installation of solar panels to sustainably offset our electricity demands. Our kitchen textiles are printed on organic, unbleached cotton, ensuring environmentally friendly products without compromising quality.
Ethical Partnerships
We believe in supporting conservation and animal welfare. A portion of sales from specific collections, such as our Barklife range, is donated to organisations like WeCare Sri Lanka, RSPB, Born Free, and Act for Wildlife.
SCOPE CALCULATIONS
My first task is to write an environmental one-pager, so here goes!
Categories to work on:
On some sites these are listed as scope 1, 2 and 3
- Scope 1 – Vehicles and gas
- Scope 2 - Consumed energy and electricity
- Scope 3 - Everything else, basically all procurement.
This can also be divided into these more helpful groups
- Energy
- Transport
- Buildings
- Procurement
- Waste
So I did a quick list of things in each category, then actions next to each one...
ENERGY
DONE
- kiln (new energy efficient one purchased for new premises)
- lights (switched to LED in most of building)
- heaters (choose best source of heat, currently electric)
- supplier (choose a green renewables based supplier)
TO DO
- hot water (Conserve, use flask for heated water)
- kitchen use (use induction hob and microwave)
- renewables on site (source funding for solar array, heat pump?)
- heat people not places (electric mats on chairs etc?)
- smart meters (ask for one in new premises)
Transport
DONE
- We work in the village where we live, so we try to walk to work as much as we can.
- Car we have an EV which can be charged at home as we have solar panels
- Van, we a small vehicle with low emissions, but it’s diesel not electric.
- Government funded Cycle purchase scheme for 2 staff members Hannah has an EBike, and Charlie has a funded bike too.
TO DO
- Fit charging point for EV at work
- Fit solar panels to our building to generate electric for heaters, kiln etc. I am looking into possible funding for this. We don’t own the building and our lease doesn’t offer us right to renew, so I am reluctant to fit a solar array under these circumstances.
- Transport in terms of freight and distribution (pick EV based transport for deliveries, assess all distribution and ask for change, offset what we can’t change)
BUILDINGS
DONE
- Fitted LED Lighting in all main used rooms
- Switched to green energy supplier
- Insulated flooring using cork in the office space and reusable mats in other rooms - a work in progress
- New roof with high insulation rating now fitted, helped by a grant applied for.
TO DO
- Water use, (fit sprinkler taps for low water use)
- Toilet (fit basin toilet combo for grey water re-use)
- Collaborate with other businesses next to ours, look for grants etc
PROCUREMENT
DONE
- Contacted our main manufacturer in Sri Lanka about energy use, purchasing, distribution, shipping etc. We now have detailed data on their energy use and sustainability. This is a work in progress, new kilns are being purchased, but their government doesn’t have climate change at the top of their agenda.
- They have now fitted solar panels and all of their electricity is now solar, a major achievement!
Here are a few other steps they have taken so far...
We have reduced our monthly LP Gas usage from 22,000 Kgs to 15,000 Kgs over the past 10 years using the following methods...
- Replacing old, less efficient kilns with new ones.
- Controlling the reject percentages in production. We have bought the average monthly % down from 25% to 15%. This reduces the amount of rework and extra pcs we need to produce.
- Converting our product lines from high volume, low priced ceramics to low volume more difficult to make, high end ceramics.
Ceramics is an energy intensive industry and the manufacturing of our products is problematic for this reason.
Our textiles supplier prints on organic cotton using eco friendly inks, so we feel this is the best option for the textiles at present. We don’t use any plastic packaging.
I have been gradually researching and gathering information on other products we could add to what we create and sell that could be part of a circular economy and have low carbon production methods. So far printmaking, using wooden production of alternate products and potentially jewellery are top of my list. These all take time to develop new products, but sketches are being done!
TO DO
- Research an alternative shipping company from Sri Lanka that is doing what it can to reduce its carbon
- Find a delivery company that delivers from the port to our warehouse using the best methods.
WASTE
We produce very little waste in-house, we recycle everything that we possibly can and we use no plastics in our packaging, so our packaging waste is all either recyclable of compostable, even the tape - worms love cardboard!
We compost all food waste, taking it home to add to our kitchen garden compost.
There are very small amounts of plaster waste generated in-house when making moulds, all moulds are sent to landfill at the end of their life, so this is an area that needs work, but again is very minimal waste.
This area still needs more work... we would like to be a circular economy business.
TO SUMMARISE...
Continuous Improvement
We regularly assess all aspects of our business through a sustainability lens, striving to make environmentally responsible choices. By supporting Hannah Turner Ltd., you join us in our journey towards a more sustainable future.
