The Compleat Food Group has strengthened its sustainability credentials with the publication of its 2025/26 ESG Report, highlighting measurable progress towards its long-term net-zero ambitions.

The UK food manufacturer has cut Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 36% against its baseline year, with the reduction supported by the procurement of renewable electricity across its production sites and continued investment in energy efficiency.

The business has also revalidated its Science Based Targets and Forest, Land and Agriculture (FLAG) targets, providing a renewed framework for reducing emissions across both its own operations and the wider value chain.

From targets to product data

One of the most significant developments has been the expansion of The Compleat Food Group’s Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) programme.

Environmental performance data is now available across its entire portfolio, covering more than 4,000 products and 6,000 sub-recipes. The analysis goes beyond carbon, providing insight into climate, nature, water and nutritional impacts.

For a food manufacturer, the value of this data gives product development and commercial teams a clearer picture of where environmental improvements can be made, while also providing information that can support customers with their own sustainability objectives.

This marks a shift from treating sustainability as a predominantly operational issue towards using environmental data as part of product and formulation decision-making.

Broadening the sustainability agenda

The group has also expanded its focus beyond carbon reduction.

During the year, it developed a dedicated water stewardship roadmap and increased biodiversity monitoring through 17 AgriSound pollinator monitors across seven sites. Partnerships with Chester Zoo and Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust have continued to help the business understand and protect local ecosystems.

The approach reflects the increasingly broad sustainability expectations facing food manufacturers, where energy and emissions are being considered alongside water, biodiversity, agriculture and the resilience of natural resources.

Turning surplus into social impact

The group’s sustainability programme also extends into food waste and community impact.

Through its partnership with Felix, The Compleat Food Group redistributed 169 tonnes of surplus food during the year, helping provide more than 402,000 meals to charities and community organisations.

According to the company, the initiative also avoided 187 tonnes of CO2 emissions and saved 176 million litres of embedded water.

The figures demonstrate how interventions around surplus food can deliver environmental benefits while addressing social needs – particularly important for manufacturers looking to extract greater value from resources already entering their production systems.

Building resilience through ESG

The 2025/26 report is The Compleat Food Group’s third annual ESG report since the group was formed in late 2021. Its latest progress suggests the business is moving towards a more data-led approach, with sustainability increasingly incorporated into decisions around energy, products, water, nature and resource use.

Nick Field, CEO of The Compleat Food Group, said: “For the past three years, we’ve shared our ESG progress, and we’re proud to keep building on what we’ve achieved.”

He added: “We have proudly embedded ESG into the decisions we make, helping drive positive outcomes for our people, our planet and our communities.”

For food manufacturers, the significance of The Compleat Food Group’s progress lies not simply in its headline emissions reduction, but in how sustainability is being integrated across the business. With product-level environmental data now covering thousands of products and sub-recipes, the next stage of the journey could increasingly be about using that information to influence what is manufactured, how it is made and the resources required to make it.

The company says its focus remains on building a more resilient business while ultimately “creating food to feel good”.