British grower Westland Nurseries, a fine dining supplier of delicious specialities such as micro leaves, edible flowers, sea vegetables and tomatoes, has sealed a £1million sustainability upgrade deal with Lombard, NatWest Group’s asset finance provider.
Some £540,000 of LED lighting for horticultural growing is being installed under the agreement by the business based in Evesham, Worcestershire, a move that increases product yields while reducing energy costs and its carbon footprint.
A further £160,000 is funding solar panels on site powering Westland’s production house while a third deal has also been arranged to set up a new packing line, enhancing production efficiency while cutting costs to the wider business.
Over the lifetime of the LED lights, nearly 8,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions will be saved. The solar energy will contribute CO2 emission savings, taking the total saved to over 9,500 tonnes overall.
Together the three deals will halve carbon emissions showing, says Lombard, its commitment to supporting small and mid-size businesses (SMEs) following NatWest’s Springboard to Sustainability report which revealed that half of the UK’s carbon reduction ambitions can be delivered by the country’s SME sector.
Following the findings, NatWest made the commitment to ensure SME funding, pledging £100 billion of climate and sustainable backing by 2025.
“At Westland Nurseries we’re passionate about sustainable growing and looking after our planet and its resources. The sustainability improvements that we are making across the business will not only help us toward our climate goals, but will result in better and more delicious produce,” declares Peter Taylor, Westland Nurseries general manager.
“The support we have received from Lombard and NatWest has been invaluable in helping us move towards achieving our goals and we are grateful to them for continuing to fund innovation in the agricultural sector.”
Martyn Cosgrove, Lombard’s relationship manager, added: “Recent research from NatWest’s Springboard to Sustainability report found that half the UK’s carbon reduction ambition can be delivered by the country’s SME sector and businesses like Westland Nurseries show that the groundwork to make improvements is already well underway. We’re committed to supporting businesses that share our vision for a greener future.”
For more information about NatWest Group’s support, visit: https://tinyurl.com/
