SUSTAINABILITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY

Here at Parkmore, we’ve committed to making positive changes, in order to minimise our impact on the environment. We’re happy that many of our retailers are also joining us on the road to continuous improvement with their sustainability practices and commitment to environmental responsibility.

Here are some highlights from a few of our retailers who have made a commitment to environmental responsibility and sustainability, and have made significant inroads in this area.

MUFFIN BREAK

"YOU BUY A TAKEAWAY CUP. WE RECYCLE ONE!  It’s simple. For every takeaway coffee or hot drink sold by Muffin Break, we’ll pay to have one cup recycled by Simply Cups.  Most takeaway coffee cups can’t be recycled easily, due to the combination of paper and waterproof plastic. Simply Cups work with innovators to solve this problem. They’re collecting disposable coffee cups from all over the country and giving them a second lease on life as a new recycled, and recyclable, product. With 210 Muffin Break stores across Australia, we believe we can take 11 million cups out of landfill.

SAVE WHEN YOU CHOOSE TO REUSE!  We are also introducing a whole new range of colours for our signature Muffin Break KeepCups.  KeepCup is the world’s first ‘barista standard’ reusable cup. It is durable and lightweight, with a firmly-fitting lid that’s perfect for coffee on the go! With an aim to replace disposable cups, over a year a KeepCup can also reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 92% (University of Melbourne).  Available for purchase in stores, the Muffin Break KeepCup comes in a variety of cool colour combinations. Customers who ‘choose to reuse’ also receive a 30c discount on coffee every time they bring in a reusable cup."

Find out more about Muffin Breaks commitment to sustainability here.

 

BOOST JUICE: 

“We researched the best possible product that has the minimum negative impact on the environment and surprise, surprise, polystyrene came out the best due to how it was produced and how it did not breakdown and leak poison into the environment. We review this annually and with new products always coming available using better techniques we found the paper cups.  So we converted all of our stores to this new product. We are continuously looking for new ways of putting the lightest foot print on the earth and Janine has committed to plant over 10,000 trees per year. To date she has planted over 100,000 trees. We know however that the best thing we can do is to keep rubbish to a minimum. 

That’s why we have our Boost Enviro Cups available in every store, and to encourage you to purchase these we offer you $1 OFF your Boost every time you bring it in for a refill! Boost is committed to ongoing improvement and we will continue to review what we serve your Boost in to make sure that we are using the best product available for packaging.”
 
Don’t forget to buy an Enviro Cup next time you're at Boost!
 
Find out more about Boost Juice and their sustainability practices here.

 

THE COTTON ON GROUP (FACTORIE):

“Operating with integrity and ‘doing the right thing’ has been embedded in how we do business since day one. It remains at the core of their operations today. As a global retailer they know their responsibility goes far beyond just selling clothes. They’re determined to use their business to have a positive impact on people, communities and the planet. Cotton is one of the most commonly used natural fibres in the world with more than 25 million tonnes produced every year in over 80 countries, accounting for almost half the fibres used to make clothing and other textiles. While global cotton farming supports approximately 250 million people’s livelihood in the production stages alone, it’s important to acknowledge that the industry consumes a lot of water at the same time.
 
In fact, it’s estimated that the textile industry uses 378 billion litres of water annually, mostly for cotton production, and that it takes 2,000 litres of water to produce the cotton needed to make just one t-shirt or pair of jeans. So what are we doing about it? The Cotton On Group uses thousands of tonnes of cotton each year and we believe there is enormous opportunity for us to make a positive difference to people’s lives and the environment through more sustainable cotton farming practices. As a business, we’ve set ourselves a goal to have 100 per cent more sustainable cotton through our supply chain by 2021 and we’re on track to achieve this goal through our partnership with the Better Cotton Initiative and our very own unique sustainable cotton growing program in Kenya.”
 
Find out more about Cotton On Group’s sustainability practices.

 

COLES

“At Coles, we believe we have a broader responsibility to the communities we serve and that we can make a positive difference through our decisions and actions. In 2017, Coles, our customers and team members contributed over $65 million to our community and charity partners. We also donated 7.2 million kilograms of food to SecondBite, which would otherwise have gone to landfill. In 2018 we are removing single use plastic bags from all our stores nationwide.
 
These are significant achievements, but we know we can do more. Over the coming months, Coles will release a range of initiatives and commitments to drive more sustainable operations, to reduce our impact on the planet and to help our customers and team members lead healthy lives. In this document, we set out our commitments that will underpin our focus to reduce packaging and food waste and encourage recycling both within our operations and for our customers. These commitments are an important first step. We know our journey to becoming a truly sustainable company will take time. Through the initiatives outlined on these pages, we believe we will help to create a more sustainable future for Coles, our customers and the communities we serve.”
 
Read more about Coles commitment to sustainable practices here.

 

WOOLWORTHS

“Green. It’s our colour. But it’s time we went even greener. Because we believe that becoming more sustainable is the way forward. While we’ve made progress in reducing the amount of plastic in our stores, and made improvements in areas of energy efficiency, sustainable sourcing and reducing food waste, we know more needs to be done. And it will be. We understand that this journey has challenges, but we’re determined to make positive change happen; to move our business, our country and our planet towards a greener future.

Reducing food waste in Australia remains a top priority for Woolworths. Together with our customers, our farmers and our community partners, we’re working to keep good food out of landfill and ensure that we become Australia’s most sustainable grocer. Through a number of initiatives, we are helping to manage waste on farms, better manage waste in our stores and helping our customers reduce waste in their homes.  At Woolworths we are committed to reducing our use of plastic packaging across our business, whilst we’ve made some progress we know there is a lot more we can do. We no longer be give out single-use plastic bags at our checkouts or online and we have a number of other initiatives to remove, reduce and recycle plastic.

Sustainable sourcing means better opportunities for farmers to implement sustainable farming methods, improved working conditions and helps to protect our planet.  Did you know 100% of Woolworths branded tea and chocolate blocks are sustainably sourced? More than 70% of Woolworths coffee and sugar is sustainably sourced and Woolworths food products use certified sustainable palm oil. We are also committed to sourcing 100% of our paper, pulp and timber products from certified or recycled sources by 2020.”

Find out more about Woolworth's sustainability practices here.

 

KMART

“At Kmart we know that by working together we can make a difference, in all that we do, every day.  We’ve been listening to those most important to us – our customers, our people and our partners – to develop a sustainable development program that reflects the needs of our community and is aligned to the efforts of the United Nations Global Plan. This plan sets out key sustainable development goals and targets to assist with building an inclusive, sustainable and resilient future for us all. We believe that if we think, act and work together we can make a positive difference to our People, our Partners and our Planet. 
 
As part of our commitment to use natural resources responsibly, in the past year we developed a sustainable materials strategy and roadmap, with cotton, cocoa, palm oil, wood and pulp, down and feathers, plastics and polyester identified as priority materials for our business.  Building on the strategy, Kmart has set long-term targets to transition to more sustainable sources of cocoa and cotton (see our targets listed above). Cotton is a particularly important material for Kmart and supports the livelihoods of over 250 million people around the world. The cotton industry has made significant investments and improvements in resource efficiency and sustainable farming practices in the past decade, but there remain social and environmental challenges in some countries, such as high pesticide and water usage.
 
As part of our commitment to source cotton more sustainably, Kmart has recently become a proud member of the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI). The BCI exists to make global cotton production better for the people who produce it, better for the environment it grows in and better for the sector’s future. The BCI standard will be Kmart’s primary mechanism for achieving our 100% more sustainable cotton commitment. We will also consider recycled cotton, organic cotton and myBMP certified Australian-grown cotton as part of our commitment.”
 
Find out more about Kmart’s sustainability practices here.
 

 

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