SuperValu Cobh spear head environmental change with in store upgrades

Garvey’s SuperValu Cobh has joined forces with the SEAI (Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland) to lead the way in terms of environmental change in the Irish retail sector and beyond.

For the 10^th consecutive year, SuperValu stores identified and upgraded areas of their own operations which can be made more energy efficient through their ‘Building Sustainable Communities’ initiative, in keeping with their priority to deliver high standards of energy efficiency and encourage renewable energy usage.

The Cobh store have installed an update to their refrigeration units and installed 560 solar panels on the roof, the results of which will provide the energy equivalent of powering 99 houses per year. This, alongside previous energy upgrades in the store amount to 414,174 KWH of energy saved per year, a 60% reduction in the carbon footprint of the store.

John Paul of Garvey’s SuperValu Cobh said “we have all been working hard to make our store as energy efficient as possible and we are delighted to have been able to update our refrigeration and have over 550 solar panels installed. We now have the largest solar panel in the country on a SuperValu store!”

Through their continuous support of this initiative over the last ten years, both SuperValu are demonstrating their commitment to further reducing energy costs, fossil fuel usage and greenhouse gas emissions.

In addition to this they are once again continuing their long-standing objective to bettering their surrounding local communities by nominating community buildings and clubs across the country to benefit from the scheme who utilise the money by upgrading their own buildings and facilities in a similar manner.

In this instance Cobh GAA Club were chosen to receive the support and used the grant to update lighting and cavity insulation. This will lead to an annual saving of nearly €2,000 a year for the club.

Dr Ciaran Byrne, Director of National Retrofit at SEAI said the organisation was “constantly striving” to increase awareness of energy and environmental issues and paid tribute to partners SuperValu and Centra for their support over the last decade.

SuperValu are part of the Musgrave Group, Ireland’s largest grocery and food distributors. With 220 stores throughout Ireland, SuperValu has served the people of Ireland for over 30 years and are deeply engrained in the roots of the Irish communities that they have stores. Centra maintains a reputation for quality, value and friendly service, with stores in over 465 locations throughout the country.

To learn how you can make small changes with a big impact see www.supervalu.ie/about/sustainability, www.centra.ie, www.musgravemarketplace.ie or follow #SustainableSundays #EverythingYouNeed or #ThereWhenYouNeedUs on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and LinkedIn.