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CLOSEOur 2022 Impact Report: How We’ve Levelled Up Our Green Game
Drumroll, please. Our 2022 Impact Report is finally here. And what a year it’s been. Now’s our chance to look back and celebrate the progress we’ve made and the hurdles we’ve overcome in a challenging year.
Our vision has remained as clear as ever — for every meal to leave the world better off — and we’ve been charging ahead to make it a reality. There’s been plenty to celebrate and even more to look forward to in the future.
Ready for a taste of what we got up to in 2022? Let’s dive in.
Cutting carbon
The food industry is the second biggest contributor to climate change after the energy industry. As part of a high impact industry, we’ve got a huge opportunity to make a positive difference and a big responsibility to do so.
The good news is our business model reduces waste and emissions by its very nature. Last year, we cut our customers’ carbon footprint by a massive 60,000 tonnes. That’s right, that weekly box you order reduces your carbon emissions by 23% compared to the same shop from a supermarket. So the more you order, the more emissions you take out of the system. Now that’s dinner to feel good about.
We’ve been cutting carbon on our end too and last year we reduced our carbon intensity per portion by 19% to hit 2.4kg CO2e. That means less carbon goes into making every meal in your boxes. What a result.
We’ve also made big moves with securing a green electricity tariff for 3 of our 4 operational sites. We’re currently looking at getting the final site sorted too so watch this space.
Fighting food waste
Around the world, a third of the food that’s produced for people to eat is wasted. In the UK alone, we’re throwing away enough food for 15 billion extra meals. That’s a huge problem – for our pockets and the planet.
Fighting food waste plays an important part in our business model. In fact, it’s one of our founding principles. In 2022, we saved our customers 22,000 tonnes of food waste compared to the same shop at a supermarket. Wowza.
We’re always working to reduce food waste at every point in our supply chain. That means making sure any extra food gets put to good use.
We divert any surplus food from our fulfilment centres to those in need. Last year alone, we donated the equivalent of 976,686 meals to charities and community groups with the help of our partners at FareShare.
Upping our packaging game
We’ve been working on our packaging too by cutting our plastic use, introducing more recyclable materials and continuing to innovate.
In line with the UK Plastics Pact, we’re aiming to hit 100% recyclable, reusable or compostable own-brand packaging by 2025. It’s a big challenge but we’re more than ready to tackle it.
In fact, 72% of the packaging across our own-brand ingredients is now recyclable — a big jump up from last year’s 58%. And don’t worry, that last 28% is high on our priority list.
We’re also really proud to have won the Seal 2022 Sustainable Innovation Award for our innovations with Xampla in creating the world’s first edible stock cube packaging. Go team!
Dishing up sustainable dinners
Vegetarian, flexitarian and plant-based diets are on the up all over the world. In fact, 26% of our customers said they’re trying to eat less meat and 39% of our customers said they wanted more veg.
In 2022, we upped the amount of meat-free options on the menu with 39% of our weekly menu being veggie or vegan.
We’ve also been packing more veg into each portion for some extra vits and mins. Since 2022, you’ll find an average of 1.92 portions of veg per recipe, and 69% of recipes had at least 2 of your 5-a-day. Who said getting your greens in had to be tricky?
Supporting our communities
In 2022, we donated £74,405 to charities through Giving at Gousto, our Payroll Giving & Matching Scheme.
Everyone deserves fair pay, especially when there’s a cost-of-living crisis to deal with. In 2022, we maintained our Real Living Wage employer commitment, with the hourly rate increasing by 10.1% across the UK to £10.90.
The journey ahead
There’s still so much to do in the race to protect our planet and we’ve got huge ambitions for the future. There’ll be plenty of hurdles along the way but we’ve always loved a challenge.
Bring it on.
Thank you to everyone who’s been a part of our journey so far.
Hungry for more info? To read all the ins-and-outs of our efforts, you can find our 2022 Impact Report here.
