VetPartners announces ambitious new climate goals to achieve net zero by 2045
VETPARTNERS has today announced its commitment to cutting its carbon emissions to achieve net zero by 2045.
Working together as a group of UK and European veterinary practices and animal healthcare businesses, VetPartners has pledged to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across its sites in the UK, Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Germany, Netherlands and Switzerland and do its part to address the global climate crisis.
Over the last five years, VetPartners has helped to lead the way in making the veterinary sector more environmentally friendly by investing in energy efficiency and switching to renewable energy at its sites in the UK, and reducing the amount of waste going to landfill using innovative recycling service TerraCycle.
Many of its veterinary practices, animal healthcare companies and its central support headquarters in York have signed up to the Investors in the Environment accreditation scheme and taken a range of actions to cut resource use, waste production and impact on the environment. Teams have also received a British Small Animal Veterinary Association Petsavers grant to carry out research into the use of reusable drapes in surgery to reduce waste – the largest study of its kind in the veterinary sector.
VetPartners has set out minimum environmental and social standards expected from suppliers of medicines, consumables, equipment and other business supplies, including understanding how its suppliers are reducing their own GHG emissions.
To help achieve its net-zero targets, the group has been working in collaboration with external consultants, Simply Sustainable, and its goal to achieve zero emissions by 2045 has been validated by the Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi).
To become a net-zero business, VetPartners will take ambitious actions over the next 20 years to reduce its emissions and combat climate change, including:
- Transitioning its fleet to electric vehicles
- Building sustainability into travel policies.
- Engaging suppliers to support carbon reduction
- Procuring renewable energy across the whole group
- Building on audits to date to identify new ways to increase energy efficiency across its sites
VetPartners Group Head of ESG Hannah James said: “This is an exciting milestone for us in our journey to net-zero. We’ve worked with colleagues in every country to understand where the greatest opportunities are to reduce our emissions and embed sustainability further into how we work.
“There is now a big drive towards 2045, and we won’t become complacent as we are committed to achieving some big step changes in our emissions as we work towards these targets which are anchored in climate science and the 1.5oC pathway set out in the Paris Agreement.”
VetPartners CEO Jo Malone said: “We are committed to being a net zero business by 2045. The veterinary profession is extremely caring by nature and looking after the planet is a natural extension of looking after pets, animals and wildlife. We have a duty to be responsible for our impact on the environment. Our colleagues have taken a huge range of actions already, but there is more that we can do, so it’s exciting to be committing to these targets.
“Our colleagues are passionate about looking at ways to reduce waste, recycle more and reduce our carbon footprint, and sustainability is embedded in our DNA at VetPartners. Our business has grown enormously since we were established 10 years ago but, even in times of change, we have been committed to expanding in an ethical and sustainable way.”
As part of its commitment to achieving net zero, VetPartners has set short and long-term targets, including reducing GHG emissions by 59% by 2034 from its 2023 base year.
Targets take into account current and planned activities across VetPartners and draw on best practice across the industry and further afield, as well as expected changes in government policies and the wider economy.
Future progress against VetPartners’ targets will be published annually.
VetPartners are committed to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across the value chain by 2045, compared with a baseline year of 2023.
This means that we commit to:
- Near term targets across scope 1 and 2 (market-based): VetPartners commits to reduce absolute scope 1 and 2 (own operations) GHG emissions by 59% by 2034 from our 2023 base year.
- Near term targets across scope 3: VetPartners commits to reduce scope 3 (our value chain) GHG emissions 67% per EBITDA (£GBP/m) by 2034 from our 2023 base year.
- Long-Term Targets – scope 1 and 2: VetPartners commits to reduce absolute scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions 90% by 2040 from our 2023 base year, and to maintain this to 2040 and beyond.
- Long-Term Targets – scope 3: VetPartners also commits to reduce scope 3 GHG emissions intensity by 97% by 2045 from our 2023 base year.
All direct emissions reductions will be prioritised, and any residual emissions neutralised in line with SBTi criteria.
Pictured here are VetPartners Sustainability Manager Kelly Forster, second left, who has overseen our net zero efforts with members of the Minster Vets Green Team that helped the practice achieve the Investors in the Environment Green award.
For media enquiries, please contact Amanda Little, VetPartners PR and Communications Director, at amanda.little@vetpartners.co.uk or 07970 198492
VETPARTNERS has today announced its commitment to cutting its carbon emissions to achieve net zero by 2045.
Working together as a group of UK and European veterinary practices and animal healthcare businesses, VetPartners has pledged to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across its sites in the UK, Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Germany, Netherlands and Switzerland and do its part to address the global climate crisis.
Over the last five years, VetPartners has helped to lead the way in making the veterinary sector more environmentally friendly by investing in energy efficiency and switching to renewable energy at its sites in the UK, and reducing the amount of waste going to landfill using innovative recycling service TerraCycle.
Many of its veterinary practices, animal healthcare companies and its central support headquarters in York have signed up to the Investors in the Environment accreditation scheme and taken a range of actions to cut resource use, waste production and impact on the environment. Teams have also received a British Small Animal Veterinary Association Petsavers grant to carry out research into the use of reusable drapes in surgery to reduce waste – the largest study of its kind in the veterinary sector.
VetPartners has set out minimum environmental and social standards expected from suppliers of medicines, consumables, equipment and other business supplies, including understanding how its suppliers are reducing their own GHG emissions.
To help achieve its net-zero targets, the group has been working in collaboration with external consultants, Simply Sustainable, and its goal to achieve zero emissions by 2045 has been validated by the Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi).
To become a net-zero business, VetPartners will take ambitious actions over the next 20 years to reduce its emissions and combat climate change, including:
- Transitioning its fleet to electric vehicles
- Building sustainability into travel policies.
- Engaging suppliers to support carbon reduction
- Procuring renewable energy across the whole group
- Building on audits to date to identify new ways to increase energy efficiency across its sites
VetPartners Group Head of ESG Hannah James said: “This is an exciting milestone for us in our journey to net-zero. We’ve worked with colleagues in every country to understand where the greatest opportunities are to reduce our emissions and embed sustainability further into how we work.
“There is now a big drive towards 2045, and we won’t become complacent as we are committed to achieving some big step changes in our emissions as we work towards these targets which are anchored in climate science and the 1.5oC pathway set out in the Paris Agreement.”
VetPartners CEO Jo Malone said: “We are committed to being a net zero business by 2045. The veterinary profession is extremely caring by nature and looking after the planet is a natural extension of looking after pets, animals and wildlife. We have a duty to be responsible for our impact on the environment. Our colleagues have taken a huge range of actions already, but there is more that we can do, so it’s exciting to be committing to these targets.
“Our colleagues are passionate about looking at ways to reduce waste, recycle more and reduce our carbon footprint, and sustainability is embedded in our DNA at VetPartners. Our business has grown enormously since we were established 10 years ago but, even in times of change, we have been committed to expanding in an ethical and sustainable way.”
As part of its commitment to achieving net zero, VetPartners has set short and long-term targets, including reducing GHG emissions by 59% by 2034 from its 2023 base year.
Targets take into account current and planned activities across VetPartners and draw on best practice across the industry and further afield, as well as expected changes in government policies and the wider economy.
Future progress against VetPartners’ targets will be published annually.
VetPartners are committed to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across the value chain by 2045, compared with a baseline year of 2023.
This means that we commit to:
- Near term targets across scope 1 and 2 (market-based): VetPartners commits to reduce absolute scope 1 and 2 (own operations) GHG emissions by 59% by 2034 from our 2023 base year.
- Near term targets across scope 3: VetPartners commits to reduce scope 3 (our value chain) GHG emissions 67% per EBITDA (£GBP/m) by 2034 from our 2023 base year.
- Long-Term Targets – scope 1 and 2: VetPartners commits to reduce absolute scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions 90% by 2040 from our 2023 base year, and to maintain this to 2040 and beyond.
- Long-Term Targets – scope 3: VetPartners also commits to reduce scope 3 GHG emissions intensity by 97% by 2045 from our 2023 base year.
All direct emissions reductions will be prioritised, and any residual emissions neutralised in line with SBTi criteria.
Pictured here are VetPartners Sustainability Manager Kelly Forster, second left, who has overseen our net zero efforts with members of the Minster Vets Green Team that helped the practice achieve the Investors in the Environment Green award.
For media enquiries, please contact Amanda Little, VetPartners PR and Communications Director, at amanda.little@vetpartners.co.uk or 07970 198492