This is one of the environmental achievements outlined in Food with Thought, the company’s Corporate Responsibility Report 2012 / 2013, which has just been launched.

The report details the great strides Northern Ireland’s largest company has made in environmental sustainability throughout the past year, which includes a reduction in electricity consumption by eight per cent - the equivalent of enough electricity to power 3,500 homes for an entire year, the installation of low energy lighting, further investment in heat recovery methods and 96 per cent diversion of waste from landfill.

Mike Mullan, Moy Park Human Resources and Business Improvement Director explains how Moy Park continues to set industry standards in all areas of corporate responsibility,

“The advances in managing our environmental footprint are supported by the dedication of everyone right across the business and have produced significant reductions in carbon emissions and energy usage. We want to ensure all our resources are used in a more sustainable way and this is reflected by our aim to be the most effective and efficient organisation of our kind in the industry.”

He added: “Moy Park continues to work proactively to adopt best practice methods to minimise its environmental impact.

“This approach is central to our long-term business strategy and our ambitions as a company to succeed in a competitive marketplace. We will continue to work towards increased sustainability throughout 2013/14 with proposed schemes ranging from an increased focus on water recovery and recycling across our primary sites, to the upgrade of refrigeration systems and a thermal heat recovery initiative.”

Moy Park was recognised by Business in the Community in 2013, achieving the Bronze standard in the Corporate Responsibility Index - the UK’s leading and most in-depth independent benchmark of corporate responsibility - and was the first company in the poultry industry and in Northern Ireland to receive this accolade.