The Redhill, Surrey, UK-headquartered Compleat Food Group has invested £1.3 million in the purchase of eight environmentally friendly vehicles to delivery Wrights brand baked goods to retail and foodservice customers. The trucks, which include heavy duty tractor units that tow frozen loads to destinations across Britain, and rigid vehicles that distribute baked goods to local shops and businesses across the North West of England, are powered by Compressed Natural Gas (CNG).
“We are working hard to get ahead of the government-set target of reducing carbon emissions by 2030,” said Safety & Environmental Compliance Manager Paul Strangwood. “This is a mission which sits alongside our wider Group’s Environmental, Social and Governance targets which include a commitment of making a 50% reduction of 2021 carbon emission levels by 2030 and a 90% reduction on 2021 carbon emission levels by 2035.
While the carbon emission cutback is integral to the investment, there are other benefits brought by the fleet’s onboard fridges and freezers, which are generator-driven from the vehicles’ engines and thus reduce the environmental impact even further. Additionally, the new vehicles are equipped with home comforts including larger bunks, upgraded cabin seats and more cupboard space which support drivers on long hauls.
Wrights was established in 1926 by Jack and Lizzie Wright who sold pies to neighbors from their Stoke-on-Trent doorstep. Today the company’s 600-strong workforce manufactures and distributes savoury pastries, sweet bakery and ready meals from three sites. Its manufacturing facility in Crewe produces more than three million savoury product units per week, including gastro pub pies and prepared meals.
