After 3 years of planning, our first Woodland Coffee plantation was planted out in November, with between 26,000 to 27,000 trees of birch, alder, spruce, oak and beech planted.  To each of our Woodland Coffee customers, I would like to say a big thank you.  Your choice in Woodland Coffee has made this initiative become a reality that will deliver carbon sequestration and biodiversity enhancement over the next 40 years.  One small change today with a lasting legacy.  Many thanks and best wishes, David

#sustainability #biodiversity #watermarkcoffee

The majority of coffee bags are made up of a non-recyclable plastic film that is similar to a stronger form of Cling Film and those coffee bags that are not made of this material often require specialist processing that is not commonly accessible.  It a bit like when you get a new TV, the cardboard goes in the green bin and the polystyrene goes into the black bin; very sad 🙁 .  For me, proper recyclability of an item must satisfy the condition that it is accessible and reasonably convenient for the end user, so this means that the bag can be placed in the green recyclable kerbside collection bin,

Our Woodland Coffee bags are made of No.4 LDPE recyclable film which is accepted in the kerbside green bin and its recyclability journey is something like this:

The Woodland coffee bag is collected by the kerbside collector and sorted in their facility into the different recyclable streams.  Next the LDPE film is shredded into flakes with the use of grinders. Once in flake form, the plastic is cleaned removing dirt, contaminants, and other debris. The newly cleaned bits are then dried, melted and pelletized for ease of transportation. In pellet form, the LDPE is either used on its own or combined with virgin LDPE material to produce new end-products. Many manufacturers use recycled LDPE to produce piping, sheeting and films for building and agricultural applications, composite lumber, and other products.

Making the choice to use a recyclable bag makes a significant impact in diverting waste away from landfill over time.  At Watermark, we are continually looking at ways in which we can make better quality decisions that minimise our environmental impact; a small choice today that leaves a legacy for generations to come in the form of a cleaner and healthier world for all.  Would you like to make a difference with us?

So should you go real or fake?  If you have a fake tree, the environment will thank you if you keep using it for as long as you can.  The environmental challenge for artificial trees is how there’re disposed of at their end of life; most artificial trees are made out of PVC which is difficult to recycle, so a lot of them end up in landfill.

If you are deciding whether you should buy a real tree or an artificial tree, the environmental argument runs like this:

• The carbon footprint (CO2e) of making a 6.5 ft artificial Christmas tree is approximately 40kg which arises from raw material emissions (oil) of 27kg, manufacturing emissions of 10kg and transport emissions of 3kg.
• A real tree sequesters carbon dioxide from the atmosphere while it grows; however Christmas Trees are short rotation crops with a growing life of under 10 years so the amount of carbon sequestered has a limited benefit.
• A real Christmas tree that is recycled / composted has very low carbon emissions as the carbon exchange between the growing and composting equalises, the emissions that do arise are from the initial land planting and transport of the trees from the field to the purchasers’ home.
• If a real 6.5 foot tree is chucked into landfill then the CO2e emissions increases significantly to 16 kg as decomposition in landfill emits methane gas which is 29 times more potent than CO2.
• Most real trees sold in Ireland are grown here as we have a great climate for growing conifer and this helps job creation locally as well as lowering the carbon miles of transport.

Perhaps the best environmental solution, (which is not practical for everyone!) is to bring a pot grown tree inside for the festive season, keeping it watered and putting it back outside in January;  a bit of an annual sauna for a Christmas Tree!

Whatever you choose to do, we hope you enjoy it and have a very happy and memorable Christmas!

#sustainability #onesmallchange

With over 20 acres of amenity areas to enjoy, Lough Gur has tracks and trails for young and old to enjoy. From Fairy Trails to Tricky Tree Trails and visits to the hillside heritage centre and playground; there is more on offer here than ever before. Up until August 2020 Lough Gur offered coffee that would not win any awards. With the addition of a new environmental information point café Kiosk by the lake, it was time to improve what was on offer. Through word of mouth and strong recommendations, Lough Gur reached out and met Watermark. Lough Gur is pleased to say this trusted source was right. During September 2020 Lough Gur became Woodland Coffee’s first customer in the world. A status that Lough Gur is proud to hold. Since upgrading coffee machines and moving to Woodland Coffee, customer reports on what is offered has transformed. Kate Harrold, Manager of Lough Gur Heritage Centre & Lakeshore Park commented, “Woodland Coffee was a good fit for our organisation. Lough Gur is an environmentally sensitive location. Caring for the environment is at the forefront to everything that we do. If the environment in Lough Gur is not cared for, then what the visitor experiences is diminished. We are all acutely aware that everyone and every business can make a difference. The very fact that a tree is planted for every box of coffee that we buy is a real bonus. Woodland Coffee is a business that we are proud to be associated with. Their ethos and values align very closely with our own. Of course, along with an exceptional approach to sustainability, the coffee is also exceptional! A claim that is backed up by our customers”.

Both Lough Gur Heritage Centre & Solstice Park Playground and newly opened Lough Gur Kiosk open all year round. Take a short spin from Limerick and try the full flavours of Woodland Coffee in a Woodland location.

#loughgur #onesmallchange

So what should we do if we don’t have a compost bin collection?  The good news is that waste ground coffee makes great fertiliser for plants and trees.

Waste coffee grounds contain nitrogen, which is an essential plant nutrient, as well as potassium and phosphorus; these are the normal ingredients of shop bought plant fertiliser. The quantity and proportions of these nutrients varies, but to use coffee grounds as a fertilizer, sprinkle them thinly onto your soil, or add them to your compost heap. If you decide to sprinkle them directly onto the soil, scatter them into the soil with your hand or small rake so that they don’t form a buffer preventing water from soaking into the soil and root system of the plant.

If you have a larger quantity or opt to use them at a later point, put them into your composting container with any compostable coffee cups, leaf litter or old newspapers to  get a better balance to your compost. Coffee grounds compost really quickly so this will speed up the process for the other compostable items in there too.  Incidentally the compost heap is a great place for insects to hang out in which will help with the biodiversity in your garden! Win Win Win

This is a small choice today but cumulatively it makes a big difference in terms of our carbon footprint and our impact on the environment.   Would you like to make a difference?

#sustainability #biodiversity #woodlandcoffee #wastecoffee #composting

So here goes again, we believe that with a bit of thought and effort we can make better quality choices that have a positive impact on our environment and biodiversity.  Nothing new there! But the next bit did require a bit more thought, how were we going to incorporate that idea into our business in order for it to resonate with our customers.

We have the choice of lowering the climate impact of our activities (which we are doing continually; another post for another day!), we looked at tree planting by others (via donation) or doing it ourselves.  We made the choice to do it ourselves as we felt that it is more transparent, tangible and ultimately more authentic.  More investment and more effort are required but ultimately more trees will be planted.

The output of Woodland coffee is that for every case of coffee purchased a tree will be planted in our woodland close to Pallasgreen in Co Limerick.  That tree will absorb approximately 1 tonne of carbon over its lifetime and enhance biodiversity attracting birdlife and providing a home for animals and insects.

What Woodland Coffee has sought to do is to create a simple correlation between your choice of coffee and linking that simple decision to tree planting in Co Limerick.  Woodland Coffee is a small choice today that delivers a lasting legacy for generations to come! Would you like to make a difference?

#Woodlandcoffee #sustainability #biodiversity #coffee