Sustainability
We aim for absolute sustainability in everything we do, at every touch point from the first contact with GM through to the delivery of the final product.
Our approach goes beyond materials. With our end-to-end packaging methodology, we help our clients streamline supply chains, reduce environmental impact, and make better use of space, time, and capital. All while delivering the quality, safety, and flexibility the food industry demands.
Less Waste, Smarter Forecasting
We match packaging supply with demand through intelligent forecasting, cutting excess stock, avoiding waste, and keeping your operations lean.
Sustainable by Design
Where possible, our packaging is plastic-free and kerbside recyclable. Made with responsibly sourced materials and backed by industry-recognised certifications.
Lower Storage, Lower Emissions
Our just-in-time model means less packaging stored on-site, freeing up space and reducing the environmental cost of warehousing and transport.
Unlock Capital for Greener Investment
With less money tied up in inventory, you can reinvest in your business, including in cleaner, more sustainable practices.
Reduce your Carbon Footprint
By streamlining every step of the supply chain, we cut down on unnecessary transport and energy use, helping you reduce emissions without compromise.
Built for Brands Under Pressure
Whether you’re responding to carbon targets, ESG commitments or customer demand, We help you meet sustainability goals in a clear, confident way.
We at GM Food Packaging are very conscious of the need to be sustainable in our practice; we are a market leader supplying sustainable packaging products to the market. However, we recognise our efforts must go beyond this.
We are actively working to reduce our carbon footprint, embed sustainable practices into our operations and play a positive role in the transition to a low-carbon economy. This plan outlines our current baseline, key reduction goals and the practical steps we are taking to become more efficient, more responsible and more transparent about our progress.
Click here to download our Carbon Reduction Plan.
Here at GM we are committed to the journey to NET ZERO and are actively working with an accredited company to accurately measure our carbon footprint. We have adopted a number of strategies to achieve this, such as allocating financial and time resources to incorporate solar panels and other energy-efficient solutions into our
offices and operational infrastructure.
Firstly, pollution has never been acceptable. All aspects of our operation are closely monitored to prevent this, including the careful maximisation of space utilisation in our transport and distribution so that the requirement for extra delivery vehicles is reduced. We have a goal to reduce our impact on landfill to zero by the end of 2026
and have a strict recycling scheme promoting the recovery of valuable resources.
- An additional 50% thermal insulation
- Fully automatic cooling systems
- Automated LED lighting
- Electric forklifts in our warehouses
- Fan assisted cooling in our server room
EcoVadis is a platform that evaluates a company’s sustainability performance across four key categories: Environment, Labour & Human Rights, Ethics, and Sustainable Procurement. EcoVadis conducts comprehensive assessments to provide scores in these areas, culminating in an overall rating that helps give businesses an insight into sustainability performance. The businesses are then awarded an EcoVadis medal based on their results.
For GM, registering with EcoVadis and achieving certification presents several benefits. We can proudly display our commitment to environmental consciousness with our certification. Additionally, using the EcoVadis assessment results to improve allows us to enhance our operational efficiency and regulatory compliance, thereby reducing risks and costs associated with unsustainable practices. With our EcoVadis Bronze medal we can say we are in the top 35% of businesses that have submitted to receive an EcoVadis medal.
The Forest Stewardship Council® is an international, non-governmental organisation dedicated to promoting responsible management of the world’s forests. One of the most recognised environmental credentials of the day, their system of forest certification and product labelling ensures full traceability on raw materials such as pulp and paper, enabling people to identify responsibly sourced forest products and other controlled sources.
Here at GM we have many FSC® certified envelopes in our environmental range.
PEFC stands for the programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification; the world’s leading forest certification system which provides chain of custody certification of all paper based products. PEFC ensures that these standards are adapted to meet local, cultural, socio-economic, physical, biological, climatic and geopolitical realities.
At GM, like FSC® we have a number of products that are PEFC approved.
Our Journey to 2045
As we endeavour to enact more sustainably, GM Food Packaging have established a path to 2045 that will enable us to be 100% Carbon Neutral:
Energy Consumption Reduction - One of the key ways we are able to reduce our energy consumption is through our head offices in Seaham, which have been designed and built to exacting performance standards.
Reshoring Supply Chain - Through reshoring our supply chain we will be able to significantly reduce the distances that our products are shipped.
Carbon Offset Programme with Tomorrows Forests - This programme will allow us to offset the carbon produced from manufacturing and shipping through reforestation.
Full Supplier Compliance Audit Programme - Through implementing such an audit programme we are able to ensure that all suppliers that we work with uphold and practise the same values that we do. The benefit of this is that our entire supply chain would be actively working towards the same sustainable goal.
EcoVadis Silver Status by 2026 & Gold by 2027 - Having obtained our EcoVadis Bronze status our ambition is to continue our path to sustainability and reach these next standards over the coming years. Not only does achieving these accreditations illustrate our commitment to achieving Carbon Neutral status by 2030, but through working with EcoVadis we are provided key resources and insights on how best to manage and improve sustainable performance.
