Caring for Our Planet

At Centra we are committed to reducing our carbon emissions to be Net Zero carbon by 2040. Centra are also committed to making 100% of our own brand packaging recyclable, reusable or compostable by 2025.

In 2022, the Musgrave Sustainability Fund launched to the tune of €20 million. The fund is part of Centra’s commitment to achieve net zero carbon by 2040. Over the past 9 months, we have invested over €10 million in energy and carbon reduction initiatives in stores.

To date, over 245 Centra stores have availed of the fund which has achieved a reduction of 2,017 tonnes of carbon, which is the equivalent of planting 366,800 trees or powering 1,000 homes per year. Initiatives such as upgrading freezers and refrigeration, LED lighting retrofit, solar panels, and electronic shelf edge labels (eSEL), is making our stores more environmentally friendly.

Centra’s sustainability initiatives support Centra’s deli packaging being 92% being sustainable, allowing Centra customers to enjoy freshly made salads, made to order chicken fillet rolls and other deli favourites while ensuring the packaging is environmentally friendly. 

Centra deli packaging innovations include compostable salad bowls and soup cups, reusable knives and forks and new compostable sandwich wrapping paper. One of the exciting packaging innovations is compostable sandwich wrapping paper which does not contain silicone coating or PFAS like traditional greaseproof paper and is instead made with a water-based barrier.  

Centra aims to deliver 100% sustainable deli packaging in delis nationwide by 2025.

Did you know that 97%* of our own brand packaging is now recyclable, re-useable or compostable due to the numerous improvements in our own brand packaging over the past few months. 

We are progressing on our journey to achieving our target of 100% of our own brand packaging being recyclable, re-useable or compostable by 2025. 

As part of its sustainability journey, recently the Centra own brand apple range has changed to 100% recyclable packaging.

In 2020, Centra unveiled its brand new compostable and reusable bag which is available in all stores across the country. Centra was the first convenience retailer in Ireland to introduce a 100% compostable bag, giving shoppers a more sustainable choice when it comes to carrier bags.

To date this has removed over 5.5 million plastic bags from circulation each year.

The bag is made from a blend of renewable, raw materials and is available for purchase in Centra stores. Once the bag has been used numerous times and is ready to be disposed of, this can be done so in a domestic brown bin. It is then fully broken down once taken to industrial composting sites, turning into water and CO2 within 90 days.

The compostable bag is just one of the steps Centra is taking in its commitment to be more sustainable and give consumers more sustainable options.