Central England Co-op Funeralcare to plant a tree for every funeral they do as part of sustainability pledge
Posted by james brindle | Published: 27/05/2022
A funeralcare provider is looking to fulfil its purpose to create a sustainable Society for all by taking on an ambitious pledge to plant a tree for every funeral it does.
From June, Central England Co-op (CEC) Funeralcare will plant a tree for every person it cares for, so with around 20,000 funerals carried by CEC every year this will roughly equate to 20,000 trees planted, removing around 6,000 tonnes of CO2 over their lifetime.
It is working with More Trees, who plant trees in projects around the world, to help deliver the promise, focusing on locations where they benefit most and all supporting different environmental needs. Projects in Madagascar, Haiti and Kenya are among those lined up so far.
Meanwhile, for those who want something more personal, CEC is partnering with Eforest to give people, for a small cost, the opportunity to plant a tree in the name of a person who’s died, in a county of their choice so they can visit should they wish.
It’s also hoping to partner with local projects across the 20 counties it serves to plant trees in the community and it’s on the lookout for nominations of local causes and planting projects it can support with donations of saplings.
Lee Bevan, Head of Funeral at CEC, said: “We’re fully committed to playing our part to address the impact of climate change and aim to reduce carbon emissions by 90% across our own operations by 2030, an industry leading commitment.
“This ambitious goal forms part of our Society purpose - ‘Creating a sustainable Society for all’ – and showcases how by choosing wisely and always looking for the best solution that will protect our planet, we can ensure we’re environmentally sustainable.
“Our new planting promise, to plant a tree for every funeral we do, will support our sustainability goals, with each tree offsetting 0.3 tonnes of CO2 over its lifetime – the equivalent of 733 miles in a car.
“At the same time this project will give our families the knowledge that by giving us the honour of organising their loved ones’ funeral, it will have a positive impact on the environment, while also having the opportunity to join in with their own personal dedication of a tree closer to home.
“We’re also delighted to be able to get our fantastic communities to join us in making a difference to the planet and I’d encourage people to get in touch with their nominations for local causes and projects who could benefit from a donation of saplings, or who would like to directly work with us to plant trees.”
People interested in dedicating a tree should ask their local CEC funeral home for details (visit https://stores.centralengland.coop/search to find the nearest) and anyone wishing to nominate a local cause or project should contact Trees@centralengland.coop
You can find out more here https://www.centralengland.coop/funeralcare/additional-service/our-planting-promise
Notes to editors
About Central England Co-operative
Central England Co-operative is one of the largest independent retail co-operative societies in the UK with interests in food, funeral, floral and property investment.
Owned by hundreds of thousands of members, its over 8,000 colleagues serve customers across 400 plus trading sites in 20 counties in the East and West Midlands, Yorkshire, Suffolk, Norfolk, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire.
Its purpose is to inspire communities to create a sustainable Society for all.
It actively campaigns for the Government to increase sentencing for violent attacks on retail workers and works with FareShare Midlands and hundreds of food banks, generating enough food donations to create over 2.1 million meals for people in need.
The Society embraces inclusivity and equality and is a signed-up member to the Business in the Community (BITC) Race at Work Charter, while it is also fully committed to addressing the impact of climate change and is on track to be Carbon Neutral by 2030.
It invests a percentage of its trading profit into local communities through its Community Dividend Fund scheme which has seen over £175,000 shared out between 116 good causes over the past 12 months.
Central England Co-op was named Leading Co-op of the Year by Co-operatives UK in 2021.
Press office contact: James Brindle, Public Relations Lead
Contact details: email james.brindle@centralengland.coop and telephone 07392 080028.