When we make Ivy’s Reserve, we’re following in the footsteps of our grandmother Ivy. She had a deep respect for Nature and a love of the countryside, and we think she’d be as proud as we are that Ivy’s Reserve is the first Cheddar in the world to be certified carbon neutral. These are the ways we’ve made that happen.
We’ve reduced emissions on our own and our suppliers’ farms with a committed sustainability plan and incentive programme. This covers animal feed, land management and energy use as well as regenerative farming and protection of the soil. It encourages biodiversity, improves soil quality and helps to reduce emissions, bringing the CO₂ output per litre of milk to 20% under the national average.
When making Ivy’s Reserve, we minimise waste and packaging, recover heat, filter and reuse our wastewater, and reduce carbon emissions. In all we do, our aim is to achieve Net Zero production.
We use 100% Green Energy, with electricity and gas sourced from solar power and from biogas generated from farm and dairy waste. Our anaerobic digester saves 20 million kilos of CO₂ every year, as well as providing us with rich natural fertiliser that we can return to the earth.
With market-leading carbon offset partner Climate Impact Partners, we have invested in two high-quality emission reduction projects: peat rainforest protection in Indonesia and solar-energy production in India. We recognise that offsetting is only a temporary solution and actively seek out all other routes to Net Zero.
With the Carbon Trust, we have conducted cradle-to-grave footprinting analysis to certify Ivy’s Reserve Cheddar as carbon neutral in accordance with the PAS2060 standard. PAS 2060 is an internationally recognised specification for carbon neutrality and builds on the existing PAS 2050 environmental standard. It sets out requirements for quantification, reduction and offsetting of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for products. The detail of the process can be found in the project Qualifying Explanatory Statement (QES) here.
Alongside this work, we do all we can to protect and nurture the countryside around the River Brue which runs through our valley. We leave uncultivated areas to wildflowers and other species as well as planting trees and putting up bird boxes and insect hotels. You can find out all about this side of our work at our Visitor Centre on the farm. It’s at the heart of our business and our way of life, and a vital part of the legacy handed down to us by Ivy, her husband Tom and previous generations of the family.
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