Three-quarters of the electricity used to make Britvic soft drinks in Great Britain now comes from a 160-acre solar farm in Northamptonshire.
The solar site provides clean energy to the Fruit Shoot and Tango maker’s factories in Rugby, London and Leeds.
Britvic has signed a ten-year agreement for the site, which forms part of the drink giant’s aim of reaching 100% solar-powered operations in the near future and its long-term commitment to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
The solar site, comissioned in January and operational as of yesterday (1 February), will generate 3.1 Gigawatts (GW) of power – enough to power the equivalent of 11,500 homes.
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As a result, the site could cut as much as 1,113 tonnes of carbon dioxide from Britvic’s supply chain each year – the equivalent of planting 260,000 trees.
Working with renewables provider Atrato Onsite Energy, the 650,000 sq m solar installation will scale up to produce 28 gigawatt hours.
Britvic director of sustainable business Sarah Webster said: “This is an exciting opportunity to ensure that the some of the country’s most recognisable and much-loved soft drinks are powered by renewable energy.
“We know consumers want to buy more sustainable products, and this is another step towards reducing carbon emissions and our long-term sustainability targets.”
It comes as Britvic praised Tango as the standout performer in its full-year results in November, as sales of the brand have tripled since 2018.
The drink’s manufacturer said that Tango was the “fastest growing fruit flavoured carbonates brand” as it helped Britvic sales jump 6.6% to £1.75bn for the year to 30 September 2023.
