Cakes & Savouries

Ferguson Plarre is learning how to grow all over again

'We must be the change we want to see in the world' - Mahatma Gandi

On 5th June 2008 (World Environment Day), Ferguson Plarre Bakehouses was officially nominated as one of only 4 finalists in the business sustainability category of Australia's most prestigious environmental awards: The 2008 Banksia Awards! The winner will be announced on July 18th. Wish us luck!

Ferguson Plarre Bakehouses has an active greenhouse emissions abatement program with the ultimate aim of zero emissions and zero waste. It's an aspirational goal and we believe that something as important as the environment deserves nothing less. Ferguson Plarre is in its 5th generation of family ownership and we believe that only through proactively seeking sustainable business practises will the future generations of our families and yours be able to enjoy the world as we know it today. Our abatement program includes these current initiatives at our new head baking facility: 

• Rain water toilet flushing for office & staff facilities
• Solar heated hot water for staff & office
• High efficiency aircon for offices, staff amenities & climate controlled production areas involving "outside air optimisation" to reduce power consumption
• 70% of all hot water required for cake production is heated by energy recovered from our fridges
• Use of the heat recovered from freshly baked products (using exhaust fans and the heat taken from our special cooling tunnels) to heat the main production area in winter & to remove unwanted heat during summer
• Installation of fully integrated SCADA energy monitoring system to allow "real time" monitoring of all energy consumption, both individually & collectively to allow full monitoring of all energy consumption of electricity & gas and the resulting CO2 emissions
• Over 100,000 litres of rainwater tanks plumbed for irrigation and truck washing
• Introduction of Victoria’s first Diesel Hybrid truck with Sustainability Victoria. We will measure fuel usage and bench mark the results against our fleet to assess the effectiveness of this technology and the likely payback period. Specialised insulation was sourced for the cabin to reduce weight and the associated emissions from carrying such weight. A 30% improvement in fuel efficiency has already been recorded.
• Switch from double to single daily deliveries to each store. Significant fuel and CO2 emission savings are already being acheived.
• The latest bulk raw material handling equipment eliminates approx 450 bags/wk from our system & halves our requirements for land fill. Our co-mingled waste has already been reduced by 50%.

For all of the greenhouse emissions that we cannot immediately abate at our head bakery, we have committed to offsetting by planting trees through Greenfleet. Our aim is zero emissions and reaching this target will eventually mean that we will not have to plant any trees at all. So while offsetting is not the ultimate answer for Ferguson Plarre Bakehouses, it plays a vital role in helping us reduce our carbon footprint as we journey towards our ultimate goal of zero emissions. As well as reducing greenhouse gases, planting native trees helps restore native forests, improves water quality, reduces soil degradation and provides an essential habitat for native species.

Here's an ariel view of where our first forest of 7315 trees will be planted in 2008 (Mt Worth):

Here's what the site looked like before the planting. We'll be sure to post pictures of the land once the trees have had some time to grow. 

Click below for Channel 10 footage from our factory launch in November 2007...

Together with Sustainability Victoria, Ferguson Plarre Bakehouses has launched the first hybrid truck to hit Victoria's streets. The transport sector produces 16.5% of greenhouse gas in Victoria – the second largest emitter. New technologies in the transport field promise to deliver some exciting greenhouse pollution reductions and Ferguson Plarre is helping to pioneer these initiatives. The Hino Hybrid both reduces exhaust emissions and improves fuel economy, cutting greenhouse gases by 25%. The hybrid is perfect for stop-start conditions, due to the combination of electric and diesel motors. It returns power from the brakes, actually running more smoothly than a normal truck. Reducing not only greenhouse emissions and fuel consumption but also diesel particle pollution. Sustainability Victoria contributed to the purchase of the truck and will monitor its performance, so that other businesses can benefit from the initiative.

Ralph Plarre, Co-Director of Ferguson Plarre Bakehouses (with Ken Ferguson) says “The purchase of this clean, green fuel-efficient diesel and electric truck falls in line with our company’s future move to our new green and eco-friendly premises later this year. Ferguson Plarre Bakehouses has had a long history in the State, and we intend to be baking our cakes and pies and delivering them to many more future generations. We hope other businesses will take Ferguson Plarre Bakehouses’ lead and jump on ‘the low emission’ band wagon.

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How can you help?

A good place to start is the Cool It site of the Australian Greenhouse Office. Copy and paste this link into your web browser for great tips on how to minimise your personal emissions: www.greenhouse.gov.au/gwci/index.html