Midcounties Co-op has announced further progress in its sustainability strategy, which has seen the society cut its energy use by 6% in a year.
The society has outlined its sustainability milestones in a highlights report released in time for the COP30 climate conference, which shows the society has cut its direct greenhouse gas emissions by 38% compared to 2019 levels.
Midcounties says the report has been published to help raise awareness of climate change as the world gathers to discuss the issue. This is the first time a COP conference has been held in the Amazon region of Brazil – a symbolic location highlighting the rainforest’s vital role in global climate stability.
The society was one of the first consumer co-ops to have its plans to reduce its emissions validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and has invested more than £9m over the last three years in energy-efficiency projects.
It has now announced that these efforts have saved the equivalent of 2 million kWh in energy use in 2024/25 and prevented more than 400 tonnes of C02 from entering the atmosphere. This is the equivalent of taking almost 100 cars off the road permanently.
As well as reducing energy usage and increasing efficiency, the society says its member-led sustainability strategy is built on helping community groups and other co-ops to create more green energy. This includes working in partnership with Big Solar Co-op to install solar panels on some of Midcounties’ own sites.
The society has now installed its 1000th solar panel, saving more than 60 tonnes of CO2 each year.
Other milestones include working with over 400 community energy groups through Younity, the aociety’s joint venture with Octopus energy. These projects now create enough green energy to power around 65,000 homes and make up one third of the entire community energy sector in the UK.
“We’re really proud of the meaningful and sustainable changes we’ve implemented as a co-operative,” said head of sustainability Mike Pickering, “not only working to minimise our carbon footprint but also maximise the positive impact we’re having on the planet through initiatives like community energy which help to green the grid.
“None of this would be possible without our remarkable colleagues and members who help us to do good together and work towards making the world greener and fairer for all.”
