Making Life Sweeter
We’ve always been conscious of our impact on the environment – from our practically zero food waste recipes and production processes, to our hands-on attempts to make sure we reuse ingredient packaging and office materials rather than dispose of them.
Since the beginning of 2020 we made the decision that we needed to go even further. Stories of reusing paper shredding for our Guinea pigs and switching lights are nice, but we needed to do much more. We launched company Green Teams, giving ownership of sustainable practice to our staff and embarked on a radical overhaul of our packaging, ingredients, suppliers, and more.
Our Three Pillars
We knew we needed to take a three-route approach to sustainability, making sure that every element of the business and its impact was checked, double checked, and a plan put in place to ensure our impact was a light and positive as possible. Driven by the tenacity and passion of our MD Sian Holt, we’re committed to becoming a business for good – making nice things, while making things nicer along the way.
PRODUCT
From ingredients and suppliers to packaging and means of delivery, we took a good hard look at what goes into making the world’s best fudge, and made sure that going forward it should feel just as good as it tastes.
Through new partnerships with ethical suppliers, considerate packaging, and closely monitoring our production impact, we’re more proud than ever of what we do, and how we do it.
PLANET
This is the only planet we know of that has fudge on it, which makes it absolutely worth saving! Working directly with farmers and suppliers to source the best all-natural ingredients, we’ve come to appreciate the importance of a diverse and thriving environment and our part in it’s conservation and future.
From switching to renewable energy suppliers to addressing our carbon footprint, we’re dedicated to leaving a positive and lasting mark on our planet.
PEOPLE
Being a business requires the committed support of wonderful and talented people to make it work. For over 40 years we’ve built our fudge family from 6 to over 60 and never have there been a more passionate bunch when it comes to our craft.
Driven by our Green Teams, and now as an employee-owned business, we’re putting people at the heart of everything, making sure our teams have a supportive and equitable place to work while also giving back to our local communities and charities.
What we are Doing
Like a fudge recipe there’s a lot of trial and error and experimentation when it comes to sustainability and how best a business can tackle its footprint.
Here are just a few of the ways since 2021 that we at Fudge Kitchen have made meaningful steps in the right direction.
ENERGY
We have audited our current energy consumption and are setting targets to reduce this over the next three years while also increasing our renewable energy supply from 76% to 100%. We are in the process of switching from gas stoves to electric, reducing our reliance on fossil fuels for the foreseeable future across all our sites.
PACKAGING
To date, 99% of our packaging is kerbside recyclable and some able to be composted with household food waste. We reformatted all our packaging in 2021/22, moving to UK and EU-based printing, drastically reducing our environmental impact. We only use FSC or PEFC certified card stock, providing confidence that our packaging is sourced responsibly.
EMISSIONS
We report our GHG Emissions annually to the SME Climate Hub, taking accountability for our energy usage and using the data gathered to make incremental and lasting changes to a more efficient and environmentally-friendly production process. In 2021 Fudge Kitchen joined the Race to Zero Pledge, aiming to achieve Carbon Neutral by 2050.
Suppliers
We have audited our current energy consumption and are setting targets to reduce this over the next three years while also increasing our renewable energy supply from 76% to 100%. We are in the process of switching from gas stoves to electric, reducing our reliance on fossil fuels for the foreseeable future across all our sites.
Giving
To date, 99% of our packaging is kerbside recyclable and some able to be composted with household food waste. We reformatted all our packaging in 2021/22, moving to UK and EU-based printing, drastically reducing our environmental impact. We only use FSC or PEFC certified card stock, providing confidence that our packaging is sourced responsibly.
Transparency
We report our GHG Emissions annually to the SME Climate Hub, taking accountability for our energy usage and using the data gathered to make incremental and lasting changes to a more efficient and environmentally-friendly production process. In 2021 Fudge Kitchen joined the Race to Zero Pledge, aiming to achieve Carbon Neutral by 2050.
Giving a Fudge
We’ve always been conscious of our impact, whether it be on the planet, our people, or those who with passion-driven stories to tell; we want our fudge to make people feel as good as it tastes. Since 2021 we changed our approach to charitable giving, partnering with giving platform B1G1 and WorkForGood, we have been able to provide an exceptional positive impact not only on our environment, but to local and community initiatives too.
In 2021 we raised a record £15,000 for causes around the world. In 2022 we raised the same incredible figure, and through creating limited edition flavours in-store for donations, managed to fundraise more rapidly and with greater effect for some of the most important causes that we faced this year, from the invasion of Ukraine to responding to the catastrophic flooding in Pakistan.
FARESHARE
Since 2021 we’ve raised over £9,000 in support of the amazing work of FareShare, the UKs dedicated food redistribution network, fighting to reduce food-inequality. As a food business we’re proud to produce very little wastage, and also of our ongoing commitment to supporting those struggling with access to food. We donate a meal through FareShare for every over placed online over £15, making sure that each and every good turn for us, means a good turn for another.
NEIGHBOURLY
During the Covid-19 pandemic we started fundraising for the Neighbourly Community Fund; an initiative that enabled vital community projects and initiatives to receive funding when their work was never more crucial. We’ve continued to support community causes and in 2023 we’re proud to support Neighbourly once again in the exceptional work they do. The importance of local projects and initiatives is often overlooked, but their role has never been more important, especially at a time when people are banding together to support one another.
REWILDING BRITAIN
Since 2020 we’ve raised over £5,500 for environmental causes around the world, including planting more than 2,500 trees in areas affected by deforestation. Eager to address ecological struggles at home, we’ve partnered with Rewilding Britain. Rewilding Britain is an exciting, innovative charity that promotes rewilding as an effective answer to some of the big issues - climate breakdown and species extinctions, as well as localised flooding and soil degradation. Through their work, they aim to support a sustainable ecosystem for us all to enjoy.
£18,920.75
Raised throughout 2022 up to today for good causes through customer donations.
Thanks so much!