CUSTOMERS visiting a Wokingham-based garden centre will notice a change in their carrier bags from next month.
Squire’s, on Heathlands Road, will be introducing home compostable bags and boot liners, replacing its biodegradable bags, to make it easier to recycle.
Instead of being made from plastic, they are made from vegetable starch, so can be put in garden compost heaps, or food bins where they will break down naturally.
They will also be selling reusable cotton bags for life.
And Reuse or Recycle Bin Stations have been introduced to all Squire’s 16 garden centres, enabling customers to easily recycle plastic pots, trays and compost bags.
Working closely with one of the UK’s leading recycling providers, each garden centre prepares the waste from the three recycling bins for collection.
This material is then 100% UK recycled in the most appropriate and efficient way, with nothing going to landfill, prepared ready for re-manufacturing into new everyday items.
A further change this spring sees the introduction of sustainably sourced raffia and plant sleeves for garden centre gift wrapping.
Ross McEwan, Squire’s sustainability manager, said: “We hope these customer-facing initiatives demonstrate our absolute commitment to being more sustainable as a business. Early indicators are extremely encouraging, with a positive response from customers to our new Bin Stations for example, which have been very welcomed and well-used.
“In addition to these new sustainability-focused introductions, Squire’s is certified zero waste to landfill and has Planet Mark certification for our total carbon emissions reduction for the last three years.
“We are proud to continue our drive for local sourcing of our plants, with 85% of our plants now sourced from UK nurseries.
“We have pledged to do the right thing for plants, the planet and people. We strive to improve all the time. Each small step is significant for us, our customers and future generations.”
