MINOR WEIR AND WILLIS LTD.

The company handle everything from exotic mangoes, pineapples and passion fruit to British-grown apples and pears. A lot of what is sourced is grown in tropical and sub-tropical countries in South America, Africa and Asia. There is a dedicated ripening team, who look after the produce throughout the ripening process, from field to shelf. Mango, avocado, papaya, kiwifruit – in fact, anything that needs that extra little bit of attention to ensure it gets to the supermarket shelf in perfect condition for the consumer.

The large salad range includes tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers supplied from growers in the UK and imported from countries including as Spain, Holland and Israel. Exotic vegetables are sourced from Africa, Asia, South America and Europe. Imported products include mange tout, baby corn, sweet potato, chilies and ginger. The facilities are backed by a dedicated distribution fleet wholly owned by the group.

The Old System

In 2014, MWW relocated the Perry Barr, Birmingham operation to the new Altitude site. This site incorporated the best available techniques and best practice on Low Carbon technologies to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions at the new Head Quarter offices and packing facility.

New System and Rationale

By 2020 carbon emissions from electricity, gas and water had reduced by 83% (equivalent to 2,800 tonnes of CO₂e on 2014 levels. 2020 has been taken as the base year for setting future targets.

Delivering Net Zero Renewable Energy Projects - Solar Energy

Installing solar panels was seen as an excellent way to lower the business’ carbon footprint. It is a natural, renewable source which produces little or no emissions when it is converted to electricity.

685 kWp of solar panels were installed at the UK head office in 2019 which generated savings in grid usage and carbon emissions. Installing a further 500 kWp array at the head office/main pack house in 2023, took the sites investment in solar generation to over a £1,000,000.

Project Cost and Savings

As a result of the significant investment in process optimisation and installation of renewable technologies, the company have made a significant reduction in CO2e emissions per unit of production when compared to 2019.

CO2e nemission per unit of production at Scopes 1, 2 and partial Scope 3

In recent years the business has also become a ‘zero-waste-to-landfill’ site; believing that great food should not end up in the waste bin, the company introduced a number of initiatives designed to specifically repurpose surplus food. For example, partnering with FareShare to send surplus fresh produce to local community groups and charities. In the last year, the company have redistributed more than 376 tonnes of surplus produce, which is equivalent to almost 900,000 meals for the people who need it most.

Utilising this surplus also has a benefit for the environment, with FareShare calculating that by redistributing this surplus MWW have saved 602 tonnes of CO2e and 564 million litres of water from going to waste. Any surplus produce which cannot be used in this way provides fuel of a different kind as it is sent to an Anaerobic Digestion (AD) plant where it is converted into biogas – a clean, net zero carbon source of energy.