Dawn Meats achieves 63% absolute reduction in Scope 1 and 2 emissions
The reduction has been achieved over a 6-year period from 2018 to 2024 as part of the company’s €100m-plus Plan Four Zero sustainability strategy, which includes a target of reaching operational Net Zero by 2040.
The details are contained in a new sustainability update from the leading meat processor, which charts how the company has saved enough water to fill over 1,272 Olympic-size swimming pools and has increased the volume of waste recycled, reused and recovered to 75%.
The update includes a commitment by Dawn Meats plans to rollout solar installations at its sites in the UK and Ireland, following the successful installation of solar PV panels at the company’s Irish headquarters in Grannagh, Co Waterford.
The update report covers the 18-month period from January 2024 to June 2025.
Niall Browne, Chief Executive of Dawn Meats, said: “At Dawn Meats and Dunbia, we are committed to providing consistent, high quality meat products from sustainable sources to support our rural communities. For over 45 years, sustainability has been at the forefront of our operations in Ireland and in the UK. Driven by our commitment of €100 million to the Plan Four Zero strategy, we continue to collaborate with industry and supply chain partners to improve the sustainability of our products and remain competitive in the global marketplace.”
Gill Higgins, Sustainability Director at Dawn Meats, said: “At Dawn Meats and Dunbia, we are continuously innovating to advance towards our sustainability targets. This report reflects the united efforts of our 8,000 staff members in achieving our shared progress. Our Plan Four Zero strategy ensures our actions remain focused on addressing the most pressing challenges within the industry and work cross functionally to implement the plan. As a business, we are proud of the exceptional teamwork and collaboration which has helped us to execute our sustainability strategy and deliver against our goals.”
Key developments include:
Energy: Dawn Meats invested €1.5 million to progress its on-site renewable energy generation with the first installation of solar PV panels completed at its headquarters in Grannagh, Co Waterford.
The energy generated is enough to power 210 homes for an entire year and is expected to deliver a return on investment in 4.5 years, depending on future electricity unit price rates. The company now plans to replicate the success of this project across its sites in Ireland and the UK.
Since 2020, Dawn has sourced 100% renewable electricity to power its sites and in 2024, the company implemented 26 capex projects and system upgrades which saved 5.8m kWh per year. Since 2016, Dawn Meats has saved enough energy to power 22,274 homes for a year.
Water: In 2024, Dawn Meats saved 18,000 m3 of water as part of ongoing capital expenditure projects and system upgrades. Since 2016, the company has now saved 3.18 m3 of water which is enough to fill 1,272 Olympic-size swimming pools.
The report details a number of water saving initiatives include the introduction of a new water-cooling circuit at the company’s Cross Hands plant in Wales where the water used to cool machinery is now circulated into a dedicated system and reused instead of being allowed to exit via drains.
Waste: At the start of 2024, the company increased its target for the volume of waste recycled, reused and recovered from 60% to 70% by 2030. The latest data shows it has already exceeded this target and the volume of waste being recycled, reused and recovered is now 75%.
Packaging: As part of Plan Four Zero strategy, Dawn Meats is seeking to remove plastic where possible and reduce overall packaging and plastic usage through a range or value engineering projects.
In total the company has removed more than 3,000 tonnes of plastic since 2016. Initiatives include the introduction of fibre-based options for meat trays and the development of right-size trays for products.
Key reductions include:
- Preform trays up to 35% lighter
- Lidding film up to 12% lighter
- Vac pac bags up to 17% lighter
- Mince packaging up to 63% lighter
Dawn Meats has a target of ensuring that it uses an average of 30% recycled content across all plastic by 2025. The update report shows that all the rigid trays currently used by the company now have a recycled content of over 50% and, in certain cases, this is as high as 100%. The company’s modified atmosphere packaging has 30% recycled content and plastic liners and pallet wrap used in the UK contain 30% recycled film.
The company has also set a target of the plastic it uses being 100% re-usable, recyclable or compostable by 2025. The report shows that over the last 7 years, the company has introduced significant changes to make rigid plastic packaging easier to recycle, by moving to mono materials and clear options. However, the target is not without challenges in the UK, where infrastructure to recycle flexible films has yet to be established at scale.
The progress achieved to date includes the introduction of a vacuum packaging solution for mince in a recycle ready flexible pack. This has involved 63% less plastic as well as increasing shelf life by 25%, which can also help to reduce food waste.
Farming: The company’s climate target is to reduce Scope 3 emissions intensity by 28% per tonne of finished product by 2030.
This target relates to emissions from the sourcing of live cattle and sheep from 30,000 regular farmer suppliers across Ireland and the UK, and other meat products, which account for 95% of Dawn Meats’ total emissions.
From 2018 to 2024, the company has achieved an 9% reduction in Scope 3 emissions intensity mainly due to a reduction in the average carbon footprint on the assured farms that supply products to Dawn Meats.
In Ireland and the UK, farm carbon footprints are undertaken every 18-24 months and farmers receive feedback reports explaining their emissions along with recommended actions and practice changes to reduce emissions.
Such recommendations are aligned with the Teagasc Marginal Abatement Cost Curve in Ireland and based on each farms’ bespoke enterprise and risk appetite.
Over 500,000 cattle are in Dawn Meats’ emissions monitoring programmes at any one time and 60% of cattle suppliers are participating in emissions monitoring programmes.
In Ireland, Bord Bia carbon footprint over 96% of Dawn Meats’ Irish cattle suppliers who are members of the Sustainable Beef and Lamb Assurance Scheme.
From 2018 to 2024, the average carbon footprint of the farms supplying Dawn Meats decreased from 18.74 kgCO2e per kg carcass to 18.26 kgCO2e per kg carcass, as more farms adopted a range of practice changes recommended in the Teagasc Marginal Abatement Cost Curve.
In June 2024, Dawn Meats launched a new incentivised sustainability programme for beef farmers, supported and co-funded by McDonald’s UK & Ireland. The Activate Ireland initiative involves a total investment of €4.4 million over three years and provides payments to participating farmers for successfully implementing agreed sustainability plans and reducing emissions. Bord Bia, the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (ICBF) and Teagasc also support the programme.
In the UK, Dawn Meats is working with Promar and Agrecalc to measure the carbon footprint of farms which represent 11% and 12% of its beef and lamb volumes, respectively. Known as Activate UK, the programme includes the provision of farm reports with bespoke recommendations for reducing emissions and improving efficiencies.
Through Activate Ireland and Activate UK, Dawn Meats is also working directly with farmers to measure, manage and improve biodiversity and habitat creation, and water management.
Find out more: www.planfourzero.com
