[B]ritish master papermaker James Cropper has added another trophy to its award cabinet following its win of the prestigious Green Award at Luxe Pack New York.
The company won the award at the exhibition for its support of the Burneside Community Energy (BCE) project, a social initiative that saw the installation of a 250KW Solar PV Array on the roof of James Cropper’s mill in the village of Burneside in the Lake District.
The multi-award winning project, which launched in December 2015, generates clean, green electricity, and enables residents of the village – many of whom are also employees – to benefit from investment in renewable energy.
James Cropper recently won in the same category for this project at Luxe Pack’s Shanghai edition. This time, James Cropper was selected as a winner by an esteemed panel of judges comprising senior packaging consultants from brands including Elizabeth Arden, Bacardi and Estee Lauder, as well as the editor-in-chief of Beauty Packaging.
Susan Wilson, group packaging director at James Cropper, said: “We’re absolutely thrilled to have picked up the Green Award again for a project so close to our hearts. The installation generates 200,000 kWh of renewable electricity per year, which is enough to offset the energy requirements of our specialist laminating and technical coating facility, or the equivalent of powering 50 UK homes. It’s also been calculated that the initiative will reduce our carbon dioxide emissions by 1.91 million kilograms over the next two decades.”
As well as the positive impact on the environment, the BCE scheme delivers a five per cent annual dividend to investors, and an additional £50,000 for a community fund to deliver projects of social and environmental benefit to Burneside over a 20-year period. The scheme has been widely praised as a sustainable, eco-friendly solution that benefits the local parish and demonstrates James Cropper’s long-term commitment to supporting sustainable initiatives in the community.
Luxe Pack is the premier exhibition for creative and innovative packaging and this year marked its 15th show in New York, which took place on 10 and 11 May at Pier 92 in the city. The event played host to over 250 leading global packaging manufacturers and suppliers within the beauty, fragrance, wine and spirit, and gourmet food markets.
Susan added: “We’ve been loyal exhibitors at Luxe Pack for many years now and have witnessed more and more brands and suppliers plough investment into sustainability initiatives as green credentials become increasingly important to consumers. At James Cropper, we’ve always strived to innovate in this arena, and to be recognised within the packaging industry for this commitment means a great deal indeed.”
James Cropper was also recently highly commended at Insider Media’s 2017 Made in the North West Awards in the Green / Sustainable Manufacturer category.
For more information about James Cropper, visit www.jamescropper.com.