Sustainability

Planet

Goal 1: Reduce our waste to landfill by 50%, by 2027

What have we done so far?

• In 2022, we saved 40 tonnes of waste from going to landfill by reducing waste at the source and partnering with key suppliers to convert waste into valuable commodities.
• We are diverting wooden pallet waste (which would otherwise go to landfill) into kitchen cabinetry
• We're converting the backing paper from labels (which would go to landfill) into commercial building insulation material

Goal 2: Reduce our carbon footprint by halving our Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions and substantially reducing Scope 3 emissions by 2027

What’s in progress?

• We’ve commenced installing solar power systems at our operating sites
• We're trialling hybrid vehicles to replace our current fleet for our sales teams
• We're working with key suppliers to better understand our Scope 3 emissions

What are Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions?

• Scope 1 - this includes ‘direct’ emissions from our sites and vehicles
• Scope 2 - this covers ‘indirect’ emissions generated from other facilities which we then use, e.g. a power station
• Scope 3 – all other indirect emissions that are created throughout the value chain – these are outside of our direct control

People

Goal 1: Foster and enhance an inclusive, connected and diverse culture

What have we done so far?

• Developed a Diversity strategy that will enable us to continue to create a diverse and inclusive environment where our employees can safely express their identities.
• Developed a Diversity and Inclusion Action plan which represents our commitment to embrace, recognise and increase the representation of diverse groups across Yates.
• Continued to provide our employees access to education, training and services to support their health and wellbeing.

Goal 2: Use our brands as a force for good within the community

We’ve been helping gardeners to grow for over 140 years, so sharing our knowledge and experience is in our DNA. Introducing people to the joys of gardening is our core purpose. This website has developed into a useful (and free) resource for gardeners, so we constantly work to update it with informative content. Yates supports many not-for-profit organisations, schools and community gardens around New Zealand; we like to help out wherever we can. Here’s a taste of what we’ve been doing:

• We’re proud to support Save the Kiwi. Save the Kiwi is an organisation that works alongside iwi, conservation groups, communities, and the Department of Conservation Te Papa Atawhai to reverse the decline of our at-risk kiwi population and create more kiwi-safe habitat all over Aotearoa. Yates have been donating Hauraki Gold Peat Moss to Save the Kiwi for over 15 years, to make safe, snug, comforting nests to raise kiwi chicks. We hope you like the cute pic of Indigo being released to live on Motutapu.
• Yates are appreciative supporters of the Moths and Butterflies of New Zealand Trust Pūrerehua Aotearoa. They work to preserve our biodiversity and ensure New Zealand’s ecosystems support thriving moth and butterfly populations. Yates supports MBNZT by donating a percentage of the proceeds from every packet of Swan Plant and Butterfly Field Mix we sell.
• We’re honoured to support Trees for Survival, who work with over 150 schools and local communities to grow and plant native trees, along waterways and on erosion prone hillsides. Their environmental education programme lets schoolkids make a practical difference to their environment and learn about conservation, revegetation, wetland restoration and protecting water quality. We’ve been supporting Trees for Survival for over 15 years by donating potting mix and fertilisers for their growing program.
• We receive many requests for support or sponsorship for community or school events throughout the year. We love to support as many of these requests as we can, usually by donating a variety of goodies and prizes for fundraising. We’ve helped out schools, not-for-profit and healthcare organisations, community gardens and garden events all over NZ, for many years. If you’d like to request help for your school or community group, get in touch with us at yates.co.nz/contact us/
• Yates is a regular supporter of Kids Go Gardening. Go Gardening is operated by NZPPI to provide advice, guides, tips and inspiration to the gardening community. Issues of Go Gardening’s ‘Kids Go Gardening’ magazine are sent out to over 200 schools. We often support the magazine by donating seed packets for giveaways to encourage children to get gardening.

Product

Goal 1: Make our packaging re-usable or recycle-ready by 2025

What have we done so far?

• We help fund the Packaging Forum's Soft Plastic Recycling Scheme. All of our potting mix and fertiliser bags can be dropped off at an in-store collection point; find the nearest one at: recycling.kiwi.nz/store-locator. If everyone dropped off their used Yates bags it would keep an extra 48 tons of soft plastic out of landfills!
• Our newly launched lawn seed boxes are made from PEFC certified board, assembled with water-based glue and printed with soy-based ink; they can go into your kerbside recycling collection.
• We have partnered with Agrecovery, a not-for-profit charitable trust that tackles the challenge of used pest and garden spray containers – to minimise their risks to the environment and recycle the left-over plastic. You can't put your pest and garden spray containers in your kerbside recycling - but you can recycle them FOR FREE at a drop-off location near you.

What’s in progress?

• Yates have joined the Australasian Recycling Label (ARL) Program, which helps consumers recycle our products correctly with a clear & consistent on-pack labelling program. We’ve started rolling this out across all our packaging.

Goal 2: By 2030 have at least 30% of our sales from sustainable products

What’s in progress?

• We’re currently developing a new product using renewably-sourced fertiliser. Watch this space!
• We’re involved in ground-breaking research to source fertilisers from circular waste streams

What does "Sustainable Products" mean?

These are products which have been assessed against a set of criteria including the product's life cycle, environmental benefits, packaging sustainability benefits, significant health or safety benefits, eco-certifications and any other significant sustainability benefit. The assessment compares the product against the standard product in the market (or the product it is replacing) and the relative benefits must represent a significant improvement compared to the standard (eg. 20% better life cycle assessment score)