We care, because you care.
Producing environmentally friendly products has always been part of our purpose, and the furniture we produce goes beyond this and actually has a positive environmental and social impact as we continue to keep tonnes of plastic out of our landfill and oceans. The current global target for reaching Net Zero is 2050. We are committed to reducing the Greenhouse Gas emissions (GHGs) generated by our business operations across Scopes 1, 2 and 3 earlier than this and aim to be a Net Zero business by 2040. In order to achieve our Carbon Reduction Plan of reaching Net Zero, we have established our carbon emissions, using 2021 as the baseline year.
It is important to note here that although the use of 100% recycled plastic for furniture means we save over 3,000,000kg of carbon each year we still generate carbon in everything we do. It is not right to just use this to offset our carbon footprint, which would make us carbon neutral. So below, we have set our baseline carbon footprint using SBTi, the Science Based Targets initiatives, which is a collaboration between CDP, the United Nations Global Compact, World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Wide Fund for Nature.
Our Carbon Footprint
Our business is operated on lean principles and our carbon emissions are already 50% lower than the average manufacturing business of comparable size.
Carbon emissions are measured and calculated following recognised Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocols which DEFRA subscribes to here in the UK. There are a number of Greenhouse Gas emissions that are measured and calculated and are generally referred to as “carbon emissions” or CO2e. These are categorised into three Scopes: 1, 2 and 3.
Our Carbon emissions in 2021 were...
954,734 kgCO2e
The breakdown for Scopes 1, 2 and 3 are:
Our Carbon emissions in 2022 were...
1,215,978 kgCO2e
The breakdown for Scopes 1, 2 and 3 are:
Our Carbon emissions in 2023 were...
1,055,614 kgCO2e
The breakdown for Scopes 1, 2 and 3 are:
Using 2021 as our baseline to start our carbon emission reporting highlights how difficult a journey this might be. You will see our 2022 figures were higher than 2021. As we were still under Covid restrictions in 2021 we were limited in what we could purchase due to supply chain issues. This meant our scope 3 emissions were low in 2021.
As the supply chains opened up in 2022 we could re-stock our raw materials and this increased our scope 3 emissions. Then in 2022 we had the energy crisis hit. We were left with no choice but to move our gas supply from a green energy tariff. This increased our scope 1 emissions.
This shows that external factors, beyond our control can thwart the best laid plans. However, reporting our emissions transparently helps us to focus on areas that we do have control over to continue to reduce our emissions. Proof of this is demonstrated in the 13.2% reduction we achieved in 2023 over 2022.
Scope 1 and 2 emissions include the greenhouse gases that TDP has control over which include our factory operations, and energy that we purchase.
Scope 3 emissions, which arise from our supply chains, are classed as outside our control. This includes materials and goods we purchase, supplier transport costs, etc. For example, the couriers and transport companies we use to deliver our products make their own decisions about what vehicles and fuel they use.
Scope 3 emissions form the bulk of our carbon emissions, which is the case for most businesses. From the outset, we have always chosen our suppliers carefully based on their environmental and social credentials. This is an important part of our ethos and is something we will continue to do, working collaboratively with suppliers so that we can all work to achieve Net Zero, as well as having a positive impact on the environment and society.
Our Carbon Reduction results and plans
During our CURRENT financial year (2024), we aim to reduce our carbon emissions by 10%
We aim to achieve a Net Zero position by 2040 and will continue to track and measure this to ensure we are meeting our goals.
We reduced our 2023 emissions over our 2022 emissions by 13.2%
Implement company employee schemes to reduce carbon emissions related to transport and commuting.
We aim to work proactively and collaboratively with both our customers and suppliers to achieve our respective Net Zero targets.
We will continue to invest in new technologies, machinery and equipment to achieve energy efficiencies and savings.
We will continue to embrace circular economy principles in our design and production processes.
As part of our longer term commitment to achieving Net Zero, it is our goal to increase our services within the next five years to further reduce waste plastic and other materials ending up in landfill.
Our Carbon Management is just one aspect of our overall commitment to our sustainability goals. It has always been our aim to have a positive impact on both the environment and society rather than to simply aim to be less bad. This is reflected in our product design and innovation and the materials we use as well as in our values and ethos.