HEINEKEN-owned Star Pubs & Bars is ramping up its sustainability progress with the announcement of plans to reach Net Zero across its estate of 2,400 pubs by 2040.
Although the aim is to have reach Net Zero by 20401 the initiative will take place in a phased approach with its 145 Just Add Talent managed operator pubs being the first to transition.
In partnership with its licensees and suppliers, the company then aims to reach net zero carbon emissions across its entire estate 2,255 leased & tenanted pubs. The business will set interim targets to ensure it stays on track to achieve this long-term ambition.
In 2023, Star will kick-start its journey to net zero with a £1.1m investment in rolling out energy efficiency initiatives in 280 pubs3. The programme will start to scale the most effective methods of cutting CO2 emissions identified in a £900,000 pilot in Star’s managed operator pubs last year.
Twenty-eight different measures will be used, ranging from right sizing cellars and insulation to motion sensor lighting and Fridge Managers (which turn off drinks fridges when no movement is detected behind the bar). The package of measures will be tailored to each pub building and will reduce energy usage by 15% on average.
The net-zero ambitions encompass every area of Star’s business – from energy use to its pub investment programme, and from food and drink to waste management – and will require the company to work closely with its operators, licensees and suppliers to support them with their own carbon reduction plans.
In addition, Star is spending a further £200,000 on trials in 2023. These will test technologies such as electric kitchens, solar panels, cellar heat recovery, and heat pumps.
Says Chris Sladen, Star Pubs & Bars’ Head of Property, “Sustainability is a priority for our business – we can’t win in a world that’s losing. The enormity and complexity of this programme cannot be overestimated; it spans nearly two decades, covers 2,400 unique buildings of all types, sizes and ages, and involves new technologies. We have robust and realistic ambitions embedded in our business that we’re confident will deliver. It will also bring a multitude of benefits to our licensees, decreasing their energy bills and helping them to develop their own sustainability credentials with their customers.”
1 This target aligns with Heineken’s Brew a Better World net zero ambitions. 2 There are two phases to Star Pubs & Bars’ drive to net zero. The first aims to make those areas over which Star has direct control net zero by 2030. This covers Star’s managed operator estate and its fossil fuel and electricity consumption, including Star’s company cars. The second phase aims to make those areas of Star’s operation where it does not have direct control net zero by 2040. These include products and services such as water, food, drink and waste, where Star will need to engage with suppliers and other third parties to meet its ambitions.3 These are both managed operators and leased & tenanted pubs.
