Six steps to green success
1. Use a green energy supplier
It used to be that taking the green option - with everything from washing powder to your electricity supply - was likely to cost you extra.
But no more, according to the people behind website Makeitcheaper.com
The price comparison service claims businesses can now, for the first time, buy their electricity from renewable sources such as wind and solar energy - at a lower cost than non-renewable energy.
Jonathan Elliott, managing director of Makeitcheaper.com, says: "While the price differential is only small, it is very significant because the vast majority of business utility buying decisions are driven by cost, not the desire to be environmentally friendly. Now they can choose to be cheaper and greener at the same time, so it's an easy decision to make."
It claims the best green tariff across all suppliers for a three year fixed-price contract is currently 9.42p/kWh (pence per kilowatt hour), while for non-renewable - or 'brown' energy - it is 9p/kWh. However, tax is added to brown energy in the form of the Climate Change Levy, which went up on April 1 - adding a further 0.456p/kWh, making the green option narrowly cheaper by 0.036p/kWh.
The new rates apply to well over half of the 1.8 million electricity meters in the UK that are classed as neither residential nor industrial - such as those located in pubs.
One pub business that has truly embraced green electricity is music venue Filthy Macnasty's in Islington, North London.
The venue recently switched to energy supplier Ecotricity as part of a step-by-step approach to going green.
''Electricity is responsible for more than 35 per cent of the UK's carbon output," says Filthy Macnasty's owner Paul Hallam. "One of the best ways to fight climate change is to build more new sources of renewable energy, so I was very surprised to see that there was one electricity company in the whole country claiming to be green!"
Ecotricity claims to be the world's first green electricity company and still the only supplier in the UK investing solely in new green energy generation.
www.makeitcheaper.com www.ecotricity.co.uk
2. Go for a green award
Paul and Clare McKay have really put their pub - the Sharksfin in Mevagissey, Cornwall - on the map with a silver Green Tourism Business Award.
One of only a handful of pubs in the country to gain the award, and the first in Cornwall, the scheme has not only boosted the pub but provided a new focus to the business.
"Doing the award was hard work, but we think we are going to reap the rewards in increased business and PR," says Clare.
"After opening last year this has really helped us to define what we are all about."
Applicants for the not-for-profit scheme pay a joining fee of £65 and an annual charge based on the number of employees - in return they get a full inspection visit every two years which sees them advised on energy-saving across their business and graded for an award.
In the case of the Sharksfin - a St Austell Brewery managed site - the inspector was impressed by the energy-efficient lighting and AA-rated kitchen equipment in place on the site, as well as staff knowledge.
The McKays have also launched a drive to reduce packaging by doing things such as putting out sugar cubes in bowls, rather than offering sugar in sachets, while 5p from every cup of Fairtrade coffee sold goes to a local marine conservation trust.
"We believe a lot of being green is about reducing food miles too," adds Clare. "But we are very lucky as we are right on the harbour and we can take the fish as it comes straight off the boats!"
Andrea Nicholas, UK manager of the Green Tourism Business scheme, says: "We would love to see more pubs applying for this award - it is open to any business which believes itself to be in the tourism industry."
For more on the scheme visit www.green-business.co.uk
3. Get serious about flushing
Men's toilets in pubs are notoriously hard to keep germ-free and pleasant smelling - cleaners hate cleaning them, maintenance engineers hate maintaining them.
As a result an awful lot of water gets flushed through them in an awful lot of pubs, with 'pineapple chunk' blocks of chemicals that dissolve gradually in the urinal often used.
Waste firm Serious Waste Management has a solution which it claims is more efficient, more environmentally friendly - and can save up to 50 per cent of water costs. The environmentally friendly blocks contain bacterial cultures that clean and deodorise urinal traps and pipes - meaning a typical urinal can be limited to about three flushes per day when using them.
In trials, the makers claim maintenance costs for one building were reduced from almost £3,000 a year to £100 as a result of blockages being reduced to virtually zero.
Nottingham-based Castle Rock Brewery, with 20 pubs in the East Midlands and Yorkshire, is one pub company which has made full use of the product.
www.weareserious.co.uk
4. Sell environmentally friendly products
Selling products that wear their environmentally friendly credentials on their sleeve will boost your image and sales to boot.
Belu bottled water, for example, is proving to be a big draw to customers with a proposition that is both green and ethically sound.
The brand, which recently went on sale across the 289-pub Orchid estate, contributes 100 per cent of its net profits to clean water projects - with every bottle purchased in the UK providing someone in India or Africa with clean water for one month, via the WaterAid charity.
Moreover, the product is entirely carbon neutral, with the company's sourcing and bottling operations in Shropshire having converted to wind power and all remaining CO2 emissions offset.
Belu also comes in the UK's first compostable bottle made from bio-degradable corn, which can be commercially composted back to soil in just 12 weeks - a staggering million times faster than normal plastic bottles.
Orchid commercial director Simon Dodd says: "By stocking Belu we are clearly demonstrating our commitment to initiatives that support the environment and make a real difference to people's lives in some of the poorest countries on earth.
"Corporately and collectively we can stand proud, knowing we are also doing our bit towards a cleaner planet, as well as increasing employee and customer loyalty."
www.belu.org
5. Lower your temperatures
As well as simply turning down your thermostat, there is now a range of other ways in which you can lower the temperature th the pub and save money.Constantly providing clean glasses can be a big cost for many businesses, particularly when washing in glasswashers at the high temperature usually required.
One firm has now launched a range of under-counter glasswashers which it claims offer dramatic savings on running costs while still delivering a 'polish-free' finish.
Winterhalter's ReTemp range - short for 'reduced temperature' - gains its low running costs by washing at a low temperature of 40ÞC instead of the standard 65ÞC. Specially developed detergent and rinse aid ensure the system gives excellent washing results and hygiene at that lower temperature.
By using the lower temperature, the ReTemp glasswasher costs less to operate, since the lion's share of running costs are normally accounted for by heating the wash water. Winterhalter claims that in a typical pub the new models could deliver energy savings of up to 2,000kWh a year, reducing running costs by up to 16 per cent.
www.winterhalter.co.uk
6. Use online tools
Liquid petroleum gas supplier Calor has launched a website to help pubs and other businesses find the latest energy-efficient heating, cooling and water heating solutions.
The site features technologies such as gas heat pumps and combined heat and power units, which take '
