Business owners and managers from 30 local organisations attended a breakfast briefing held at Thainstone Agricultural Centre in Inverurie in find out how they could tackle rising energy, water and waste costs, and reduce their environmental impact.
The event was hosted by experts from Zero Waste Scotland’s Resource Efficient Scotland programme as part of Aberdeen & Aberdeenshire Sustainable Business Week.
The breakfast briefing kicked off with an introduction by Aberdeenshire provost, councillor Bill Howatson. After this, attendees learnt about the support and funding that are available to help small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) reduce their energy and water use, and manage waste more efficiently.
These include free on-site assessments of resource use, funding for waste prevention measures and interest-free loans from £1,000 to £100,000 provided by the Scottish Government.
Attendees of the breakfast briefing were enthusiastic about the support on offer.
“Energy, water and waste costs can have a big impact on the profitability of businesses, so it was very useful to find out about the support available to help us continue to improve our performance and minimise our resource use, “said George Milne, Owner of Milne & Co in Inverurie.
Graeme Ross, director of J G Ross Bakers in Inverurie, commented: “In a world of diminishing natural resources, sustainability is something we should all take seriously. It was fantastic to see the support that’s available and the steps we can take in our business to improve environmental performance and reduce our energy bills even further.”
During the breakfast briefing, successful North-east businesses showcased their sustainability stories and demonstrated how they are enjoying savings through efficiency improvements.
Les McArthur, Operations director at shortbread manufacturer Dean’s of Huntly, explained how activities, such as performing energy audits and installing energy efficient equipment, is unlocking value for his business.
“I believe that, for a business to truly claim to aspire to being a market leader, it needs to make sustainable improvement central to its business plan,” said Mr McArthur.
Sustainable Business Week was run by Zero Waste Scotland’s Resource Efficient Scotland programme, in partnership with Aberdeen City Council (as part of its ‘Powering Aberdeen’ programme), Aberdeenshire Council and Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce.
During the week, a breakfast briefing was also held in Aberdeen City, while local ice-cream manufacturer, Mackie’s of Scotland, opened its doors to showcase its sustainability success.
Aberdeenshire also has 56 additional Green Champions after local businesses attended a free CPD-certified training course from Resource Efficient Scotland on how to spearhead sustainability in their businesses. Over 1,000 Green Champions have now been trained across Scotland.
Speaking about the event, Iain Gulland, Chief Executive, Zero Waste Scotland, said:
‘It’s fantastic to have received such positive feedback from Inverurie businesses that attended the breakfast briefing during Sustainable Business Week.
“The support from our Resource Efficient Scotland programme is available all year round, so I encourage all local businesses, particularly those that missed Sustainable Business Week, to get in touch and find out how they can support you to cut costs and reduce your environmental impact.’
Since Zero Waste Scotland’s Resource Efficient Scotland programme was launched in 2013, it has helped 273 organisations in Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire to identify annual savings of £3.5m. That’s an average identified annual saving of £12,820 per organisation.
Find out more about the support that is available to businesses in the North East by visiting www.resourceefficientscotland.com or calling 0808 808 2268.
Zero Waste Scotland’s advice and support for SMEs, delivered through its Resource Efficient Scotland programme, is supported by the European Regional Development Fund through the £5.8m Resource Efficiency Highlands and Islands Operation of the £73m Resource Efficiency Circular Economy Accelerator Programme.