Reducing carbon footprint at Blar Mhor - MOWI - Scotland

Reducing carbon footprint at Blar Mhor

BSW Group members, BSW Timber and Scott Pallets have joined forces to design and produce innovative timber pallets which will help Mowi to reduce its carbon emissions.

65,000 tonnes of fresh salmon is chilled, packed and shipped throughout the UK and abroad from Mowi’s flagship production facility, Blar Mhor, on timber pallets. Mowi approached Scott Pallets to support a move away from the more traditional forms of pallet supply.

This led to a successful collaboration with BSW Timber, which installed a pallet production line at Blar Mhor to manufacture pallets specifically for Mowi’s Scottish salmon.

This strategic move means Mowi’s pallets are not just being manufactured in Scotland, but the timber is also being grown in the country too – enabling Mowi to benefit from a secure, local supply of timber pallets for its production line. Ultimately, this has helped to solve the challenge of ensuring a continuous, reliable supply of sustainable timber pallets to this remote location from just a few miles away.

From seed to finished pallet, the materials and labour involved are all within the north west of Scotland. This saves the transportation of timber to a separate pallet manufacturing site, and again saves the transportation of the manufactured pallets to Mowi’s processing facility – that’s 290 miles saved for one load of pallets. During the course of a year, and 140,000 pallets used, this equates to roughly 43 tonnes of CO2 emissions saved.

Having a reliable source of pallets in such close proximity means that Mowi no longer needs to order a full load of pallets and store them but can call off smaller quantities as and when they are required.

Mowi’s Sales and Operations Director Scott Nolan said: “Mowi has nearly completed its expansion and upgrade of its salmon processing plant in Fort William with the latest equipment that advance our sustainability goals detailed in our Leading the Blue Revolution Plan. This business partnership with local Lochaber companies, Scott Pallets and BSW Timber, complements numerous initiatives that will help lower our carbon footprint while also securing delivery of the UK’s top seafood choice.”

Robert Blaikie, Sales Director at Scott Pallets, said: “We’re proud to be supporting this major employer in the Scottish Highlands with a collaborative approach that achieves really positive environmental gains.

“This project is a perfect demonstration of how BSW Group, and UK businesses generally, can work together and create a reduced-carbon economy.”

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