The Heart of England Co-op is committing an additional £1.75m in eco-friendly initiatives, on top of the previous £2.36m spend.
Key projects planned for 2026 include a second phase of refrigeration upgrades, solar installations and energy-saving lighting.
The company has already made significant investments in greener technologies, such as £1.6m spent on new refrigeration systems using lower Global Warming Potential gases and £500,000 spent on solar power installations across 22 food and funeral locations.
The new doored refrigeration cases, installed across ten food branches, have reduced the refrigerant holding capacity by 50% and are designed to run efficiently with new equipment.
Additionally, the company has been removing gas boilers from its buildings and replacing them with greener alternatives, to date more than £50,000 has been spent on the work at eight sites.
Moreover, the switch to LED lighting across all food stores has reduced energy consumption by nearly 65%.
For instance, the Co-op food store in Hinckley boasts a smart lighting system which automatically adapts levels to whatever is required. Lighting levels are significantly reduced in the aisles when no customers are present and return to full brightness the moment a shopper is detected.
Chief executive Ali Kurji said the Coventry-based society is proud to be blazing a green trail across Warwickshire, Northamptonshire and parts of South Leicestershire.
“Investing more than £2m in sustainability projects last year alone shows where our priorities lie. As Warwickshire’s biggest independent retailer, we want to lead by example in putting the planet first.
“The environment is a key factor to us in every development we take on and our new and existing food stores are becoming progressively greener. We keep a close eye on any technological advances which could help us to improve our carbon footprint at both our stores and funeral homes.”
The company’s ultimate ambition is to achieve net zero and Kurji added that the investments reflects their commitment to that goal.
The Society has also added seven more charging points in the car park of its Coventry HQ, bringing the total to 16. All the chargers take power from the new solar panels on the roof when there is sufficient light.
In addition to all the engineering advancements, the Society launched a ‘hearts and minds’ campaign in March 2023 around the use of energy.
Area managers were set targets to achieve, with staff able to monitor monthly consumption levels.
John Bridges head of property services at Heart of England said: “We encourage our colleagues to use less power and they can track the results against the set targets. We believe that this is more effective than traditional methods such as putting up posters in the hope that people will read them and do the right thing.”
Steve Browne general manager of Heart of England Co-op’s food division highlighted the benefits of sustainable innovations: “A good example of this is our £1.45m investment in electronic shelf labelling which means staff no longer have to print out thousands of paper labels. All our stores have moved to the new system and that is a massive saving on ink and paper.
“Product sourcing is also an important part of our sustainability. Increasing numbers of items come in recyclable materials. At some sites and with certain foods customers can even bring in their own containers and weigh out the exact amounts they need.”
Mr Browne also pointed to the Society’s link-up with the FareShare charity as having had “positive spin-off gains” for the environment.
Heart of England added that this year it’s 38th store will open in Wellingborough, boasting an array of eco-friendly features.
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