Our ethos has always been to reduce, recycle, reuse and repurpose materials wherever possible. But what do those words mean to us here at the Cornish fishmonger?
Around 12 years ago we installed an array of 50 kilowatt solar panels on the roof of our building, allowing us to produce a substantial amount of our own electricity, reducing the need for fossil fuel generated energy. We estimate that 95% of the power we generate is consumed onsite.
We plan to increase our power generation in the near future.
Any polystyrene boxes received by us are compacted and stored ready for collection and recycling, reducing waste going to landfill sites. By installing new computer operating software, we have reduced our paper consumption by over 85%, helping to reduce the number of trees felled for paper production.
We have an agreement with the shellfish fisherman who land to us on a daily basis. We donate free of charge, any fish frames we have left over after filleting and preparing the day’s fish from the quayside markets. This is returned to the sea and is reused as lobster and crab bait.
We’re delighted to be producing stocks and sauces from our fishbones and crab shells. Our in-house chef uses fish frames and shellfish bones to create the range of sauces and flavours offered on our website, all of which start from what would otherwise be a waste product.
The balance of our frames are used to create bio-gas, which in turn is used to reduce consumption of fossil fuels.
The packaging we dispatch your seafood in has been very carefully designed, to minimise waste, and to ensure it is fully recyclable by you when you receive your orders from us.
The cardboard box can be flat-packed and contains an element of recycled material within it. There is a built-in sealing strip, removing the need for plastic packaging tape.
The insulated panels we use to keep your fish and seafood chilled come from recycled paper and are fully recyclable.
The gel packs we use to keep your seafood chilled can be refrozen and reused time and time again, on trips to the supermarket or, keeping things cool in picnic baskets. Once defrosted, the bag can be split, and the contents poured down the drain and the packaging recycled at your local supermarket.
If you receive natural wool insulation panels with your seafood orders, why not upcycle them to the greenhouse to keep plants warmer over the cooler winter months? Finally, the plastic trays we use to package your fish are the same material as milk bottles and are fully recyclable time and time again.
Our vehicles are fitted with speed limiters, not only to ensure we are good neighbours on our roads but also to reduce the consumption of fuel and to extend the usable life of our vehicles.
Our premises have been designed to be as efficient as possible. All fridges and freezers have been built to a very high specification, with Ozone-friendly gases and energy-efficient compressors, ensuring we consume as little energy as possible.
Our lighting is all low voltage and controlled by movement sensors, ensuring minimum power is consumed.
We have sophisticated drainage systems to ensure the wastewater we discharge is as free as possible from contamination, thereby reducing its impact on the environment and local sewage systems.
Our operating systems are all paper-free wherever possible and have reduced our consumption by over 80%. Any wastepaper and cardboard is flat packed and recycled, further reducing our impact on waste landfill sites.
Our website contains a huge amount of useful information on over 60 species of seafood landed to Cornish ports and the 13 different methods of fishing currently used in Cornish waters. The complex issue of seafood sustainability is explained in a way which is very easy to understand.
Using the same methodology as the Marine Conservation Society (MCS), the Cornwall Good Seafood Guide rates fish on a sustainability scale 1 (best) to 5 (worst). Scores of 1, 2 and 3 are recommended as sustainable.
This trusted, fact-based system is totally independent of the fishing industry and it helps to highlight the great work that our fishermen and fisheries managers have done to ensure that fishing is sustainable, whist incentivising continued improvement.