We have long been keen to reduce the impact of our activities on the health of the planet – no easy feat in the hospitality industry – and our intrepid team of volunteers, known as the Green Team, has taken up the challenge with some really positive results.
By Word of Mouth has a long history of recycling and we stopped using plastic straws a couple of years ago. However, by taking a few additional steps to expand our efforts and increase awareness throughout the business, we have dramatically reduced the amount of general waste we produce whilst, in contrast, we have been amazed to learn that the total weight of our recycling will soon equal that of the Statue of Liberty!
From colour coded and labelled bins, fabulously creative signage and the removal of disposable cups from our staff canteen to the expansion of low energy light bulb use, separation of animal and vegetable fats and widening our use of recycled stationery (both our beautiful new Lookbook and company headed paper are 100% recycled), the list of our eco-friendly initiatives is growing fast thanks to the efforts of the Green Team.
Crucially, in order to maximise the benefits of these efforts, we are working with a specialist waste management partner that takes all that carefully separated waste and processes it into recycled products, fertiliser, biodiesel and even uses our general waste to make energy. With one of the most sophisticated facilities in Europe, they are able to generate 37 megawatts of electricity each year from general waste products – enough to provide 50,000 households with electricity.
So there you have it, a few small changes have already had a positive impact and, far from resting on their laurels, our brilliant Green Team are already turning their minds to what the next steps might be.