Business
Seafood carbon emissions profiling tool ‘making an impact across the industry’
SEAFOOD businesses have been embracing a new tool developed to help them measure and reduce their carbon footprints.
The Seafood Carbon Emissions Profiling tool was launched earlier this year by Seafish, the public body that supports the UK seafood industry.
It works by generating carbon footprints for wild capture and aquaculture seafood products to build an understanding of emissions hotspots in supply chains, allowing positive improvements to be made in line with the UK’s 2050 net zero targets.
The tool is now being used by prominent seafood businesses including Hilton Foods, New England Seafood International (NESI) and Arctic Traders.
At Hilton Foods, who work with leading international retailers and food-service brands, the tool is being used to understand the carbon footprint of seafood products, such as basa fillets, at retail.
Emer Fardy, Group Sustainability & Human Rights Director at Hilton Foods said: “We are proud to have collaborated with Seafish to develop the Seafood Carbon Emissions Profiling Tool which has transformed how we at Hilton Foods assess and manage our seafood environmental impact.
“This tool empowers us, our suppliers, and the wider industry to consistently measure carbon emissions calculations across the sector – a vital step toward achieving net zero.
“The tool exemplifies the kind of innovative collaboration needed to make real progress on sustainability by supporting a more efficient approach to reporting and creating more time for the actions that concretely reduce carbon emissions.”
Last year, NESI committed to setting long-term science-based targets to achieve net-zero emissions by no later than 2050.
To effectively set a target and have it validated with the Science Based Targets Initiative*, NESI has been working to understand greenhouse gas emission footprint and hotspots across their sites and supply chains.
Ruth Hoban, NESI’s Head of Sustainability said: “We are using the tool in collaboration with our strategic seafood suppliers to help us understand and manage the carbon footprint of our seafood supply chains.”
“As part of the Seafood Grimsby and Humber Alliance, NESI has played an important collaborative role in the development of the tool and we intend to embed it into our data collection process to support our decarbonisation journey.
“We have found the tool simple to use.
“The layout of the tool guides the user through the information required in a structured way. We look forward to working with our suppliers on the tool and its outputs as it supports our journey to net zero.”
Arctic Traders, who specialise in the procurement of fresh and frozen seafood for leading European processors, retailers and the food service sector, is using the tool to understand CO₂ emissions associated with transport options, mainly in choosing between road and sea freight of seabass from Turkey.
Seafish’s Head of Responsible Sourcing, Dr Stuart McLanaghan, highlighted the three companies’ use of the SCEPT when he spoke recently at the international Global Seafood Alliance’s Responsible Seafood Summit in St Andrews month.
He said: “The case studies indicate how UK seafood businesses are using the tool to understand the carbon footprint of their seafood products and to inform transitional decarbonisation activities.”
“We’ve created a series of short tutorial videos that cover everything users need to know, from requesting tool access and populating data to interpreting carbon footprint results.
“The SCEPT is designed to be intuitive, eliminating the need for an instruction manual. We’re confident that users can easily get started without the usual software learning curve and there is no need for prior technical expertise in LCA or carbon-footprinting.
“The tool’s integration across UK seafood supply chains is also essential to generate high-quality industry averaged datasets for benchmarking and public disclosure purposes. However, we are only at the end of the beginning. We will continue to evolve the tool to meet industry’s needs and aspirations, and to integrate data reflecting latest scientific advances.”
Business
Bluestone National Park Resort pledges support to armed forces community
BLUESTONE National Park Resort has signed the Armed Forces Covenant to pledge its commitment to the UK Armed Forces as the country commemorates Armistice Day.
Bluestone, which employs several former armed forces personnel, marked Armistice Day on 11, with a commitment to reaching gold status on the covenant.
The Armed Forces Covenant is a promise by the nation to ensure that those who serve or have served in the armed forces and their families are treated fairly.
The Covenant aims to eliminate disadvantage and ensure that no member of the armed forces community faces discrimination in providing public and commercial services compared to any other citizen.
Glenn Hewer, Head of Sales at Bluestone, is a former Royal Marine who volunteers with the Milford Haven Sea Cadets and Royal Marines. He said: “More and more employees recognise the importance and significance that former armed personnel have and play in their communities and workplaces. The covenant is a commitment to them and a recognition of what they and their families have sacrificed for us.
“Additionally, ex-forces personnel make great employees in all walks of life. They are highly trained in a wide range of skills and bring many benefits to businesses. Providing an opportunity that allows them to further their careers outside the military is a great way of supporting them and their families.”
This commitment has also led Bluestone to join the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) Bronze award. The ERS encourages employers to support defence and inspire others to do the same. It encompasses bronze, silver, and gold awards for organisations that pledge, demonstrate, or advocate support for defence and the armed forces community.
Marten Lewis, Director of Sustainability at Bluestone National Park Resort who is also a veteran of the Royal Engineers, said: “At Bluestone, we deeply value the contribution of the Armed Forces community to our country.
“We are proud to sign the Armed Forces Covenant and demonstrate our commitment to supporting them. We believe it’s important to recognise the sacrifices made by service personnel and their families and ensure they are treated with the respect and fairness they deserve. We are committed to attaining the Gold ERS as we build our relationship with the armed forces community.”
Craig Middle, Regional Employer Engagement Director at the Ministry of Defence, said: “We are delighted that Bluestone National Park Resort has signed the Armed Forces Covenant and is committed to supporting the Armed Forces community. This is a fantastic example of a business recognising the value that serving personnel, veterans and their families bring to the workplace and wider society.”
Marten added: “The Armed Forces Covenant is a living document, and Bluestone is committed to updating its pledge to reflect its ongoing support for the Armed Forces community.”
Business
Small business briefing hosted by Local MS
A BRIEFING event which considered how to best support small businesses in Wales has been hosted by Preseli Pembrokeshire Senedd Member Paul Davies. Mr Davies hosted the event in partnership with the Development Bank of Wales, Economic Intelligence Wales and the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) Wales at the Norwegian Church in Cardiff Bay. The theme of the event was ‘productivity’, given that Wales has had a persistent productivity gap with the UK as a whole and with other international competitor regions.
Mr Davies said, “It’s always a pleasure to help facilitate discussions on how we can support small businesses across Wales. 99.3% of businesses in Wales are small or medium enterprises (SMEs) and it’s important for us to explore the opportunities there are to boost SME growth.”
“Business-friendly policies are needed to address Wales’s persistent productivity gap, and we heard from the speakers today that more support is needed in areas like skills development, infrastructure enhancements and planning.”
“As I’ve said before, the Welsh Government has some significant economic levers, and it must now use those levers to create conditions for growth in Wales. We know that when small businesses thrive, they create jobs, spread prosperity and keep our communities vibrant and it’s crucial that governments at all levels do more to support our small businesses and enable them to grow.”
Business
Bristol Trader to temporarily serve menu at the Castle Hotel
The team of a popular riverside pub in Pembrokeshire, devastated by a recent fire, will relocate to a new town centre location while repair work is carried out on the original site.
On Wednesday, 6 November, a fire broke out at The Bristol Trader, situated on Haverfordwest’s riverside, causing significant damage to the building. The fire affected two floors of the pub as well as the roof space, forcing its closure. Smoke from the blaze was visible across the town as firefighters from Haverfordwest and Milford Haven worked for two hours to extinguish the flames.
Following the incident, the pub’s owners expressed their sadness, describing the team as “absolutely heartbroken” but determined to reopen and come back stronger. They extended their gratitude to the regulars, locals, friends, and family who have offered their support during this difficult time.
In the meantime, The Bristol Trader team will continue operating from an alternative venue. Beginning Monday, 18 November, the pub will relocate to the restaurant of the Castle Hotel, located on Haverfordwest Square, where they’ll serve the same menu.
“While repairs are being made to The Bristol Trader, Team Trader are being temporarily relocated to The Castle Hotel Restaurant from Monday the 18th of November,” announced the team in a social media post. “All our menus are attached to our Facebook page, and the phone lines are being redirected.”
Anyone with a booking at The Bristol Trader who hasn’t been in touch since the fire on 6 November is encouraged to contact the team at 01437 762122.
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