Fullers 2025

Project Title: Fuller’s and Veolia Partnership

Subject Area: Improved packaging and recycling

Objectives: To increase Fuller’s recycling rate, and to send zero waste to landfill, through a new waste management partnership with Veolia.

Project Description: In 2022, Fuller’s launched a new partnership with waste management provider, Veolia. At the time, Fuller’s was reporting a recycling rate of 35% and with Veolia set a new target of a 70% recycling rate. We worked closely with Veolia to improve the opportunities to segregate waste in a number of our sites – such as introducing slim jim glass recycling bins in bars with restricted space. A large part of the partnership is improving our teams’ knowledge around recycling – what can be recycled and what happens to recycled items. So we created a suite of assets and training modules for our internal training platform, Attensi. These cover a range of topics on how to recycle most effectively. Veolia has also facilitated our commitment of sending zero waste to landfill.

Outcomes: As a result of the work with Veolia, our recycling rate has reached 66%. Over 1,000 of our team members have completed our waste management training modules. Through our partnership with Veolia, we send zero waste to landfill – with our general waste being sent to energy from waste facilities.

Additional Information: We encourage our teams to place stickers on their bins so team members can easily tell which waste items go in which bin. One of our General Managers recently reached out to Veolia and requested copies of these stickers in Thai and Spanish – two of the languages most spoken by their team members. Veolia provided the stickers in Spanish and Thai and, as a result, the recycling rate in that site increased. This led us to look at which other languages our team members speak and we aim to have a suite of stickers in different languages available.

Project Title: Electric Kitchens

Subject Area: Carbon Emissions and Sustainability in Pubs

Objectives: Reduce Fuller’s carbon emissions through installing electric kitchen equipment.

Project Description: Fuller’s is committed to procuring 100% renewable electricity – powered by wind, solar and hydroelectricity – and to moving away from using gas and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). With kitchens responsible for 50% of the average site’s gas consumption, it’s important to focus on investing in electric kitchen equipment. Fuller’s has three sites that are fully powered by electricity – including our first fully electric hotel, The Head of the River in Oxford – and a further 29 sites with primarily electric equipment. In the coming year, we have a target of installing electric kitchens in another 26 sites – taking us to nearly a third of the estate with primarily electric kitchen equipment.

Outcomes: Having electric equipment in our kitchens reduces the amount of energy wasted. Kit such as the induction hobs only switch on when they’re in use – and therefore, can’t be left on all day. This then means that other pieces of equipment, such as fridges, don’t have to work so hard to battle with the heat in the kitchen to stay cool. Plus, it makes for a more pleasant environment for our chefs as it reduces the overall temperature in the kitchens. We’ve seen huge impacts on our gas usage in sites. For example, The Chamberlain Hotel recently had an electric kitchen installed along with a hot water heat recovery system and is already seeing a 55% reduction in gas consumption.

Project Title: Grassroots Beef

Subject Area: Carbon Emissions, Sustainable Production and Working with the Supply Chain

Objectives: Reduce our Scope 3 emissions by introducing beef onto our menus that is less carbon intensive

Project Description: We introduced Grassroots beef to the menus of our six Bel & The Dragon sites in July 2024. Beef accounts for over a quarter of our Scope 3 carbon emissions – so it’s important to look at how we can continue to serve our customers the high quality dishes they expect, while reducing our impact on the planet. Grassroots beef is farmed using regenerative farming practices and produces 52% less carbon compared with typical beef herds in the UK.

Outcomes: As well as being less carbon intensive, feedback from our customers shows that Grassroots beef is exceptionally high quality. Following this successful launch, we introduced Grassroots beef into our Cotswold Inns & Hotels sites – further reducing our emissions related to beef as well as offering our customers high quality, ethical and sustainably sourced beef.

Additional Information: Founded by Alastair Trickett, James Evans and James Daniel, Grassroots is a collective of farmers that provides a supply of beef from farms that have been audited and certified to Grassroots’ regenerative farming standards. Grassroots beef is independently assessed using the Farm Carbon Toolkit – which measures carbon emissions. The toolkit found that beef from Grassroots farms produces half the amount of carbon compared with typical beef herds in the UK. Grassroots incorporates six principles within its standards – including animal welfare and protecting the local environment. When farmed following all six principles, the

beef produced not only has less impact on the planet, but it is also extremely high quality. The Grassroots beef on the menus at Bel & The Dragon is supplied through Thorner’s – a master butchers that provide the finest cuts of meat, which are ethically sourced and traceable from sustainable farms. Thorner’s parent company, Hunt’s Food Group, is a certified B Corp.