Venture into 'greener' packaging

5th June 2001
Venture Packaging Innovations of Hinckley, Leicestershire, is going one step further to improve the environment by switching its electricity supply to Ecotricity, Europe's first and largest 'green' electricity company, to reduce its Carbon Dioxide emissions.

The company already sources its raw materials from managed forests, making cardboard packaging more eco-friendly than ever before and now with Ecotricity, Venture will save the environment around 133 tonnes of CO2 emissions every year.

Ecotricity is generated from more sustainable energy sources such as wind, hydropower and landfill gas. Based in Stroud, it is the company's aim to stimulate a mass market for Ecotricity by offering it at the same price as conventional, polluting electricity, to help in the fight against climate change.

Established in 1988 and now employing more than 60 staff, Venture has a turnover in excess of £5m. Their customers include household names such as Kenwood, Massey Ferguson, Crayola and Hallmark and they produce over 40 million cardboard cartons annually for both the UK and export market.

Trevor Clarke, Managing Director of Venture, says of his company's decision to switch to Ecotricity, "We've made a commitment to both our customers and the environment to do our bit and this is the first step."

Dale Vince, Managing Director of Ecotricity, welcomes VPI as a new customer, saying, "Venture is setting an excellent example to other manufacturers by combining business and environmental responsibilities in this way."