our race to net zero
- 1 day ago
- 5 min read
By Tris and Jon, Founders, Pieminister
When we started Pieminister back in 2003 - baking pies in a small Bristol shop and hauling them to Glastonbury - we weren't thinking about carbon footprints. We were thinking about the perfect pastry.
But as the business grew, so did our sense of responsibility. Making great pies and doing right by the planet aren't in conflict. They're inseparable. That's why, as proud members of the UN's Race to Zero, we've published our first Net Zero Roadmap: a clear, honest action plan for how we'll get to Net Zero carbon emissions across all scopes by 2040.
Here's what that means, what we've already done, and (most importantly) what we still need to do.
Why this matters to us (and to you)
The food industry is both a major driver of climate change and one of its most vulnerable victims. The climate crisis is already affecting millions of lives, and it's no longer a question of if the worst effects arrive, but when and how bad. There is still time to act, but only if businesses stop waiting and start moving.
We believe every brand has a duty to back up their sustainability commitments with real action. So here's ours.
Our Pies, Planet, People commitments
Our sustainability framework has nine commitments spanning Pies, Planet and People, from animal welfare and deforestation-free sourcing, to packaging, culture and community. This roadmap focuses specifically on commitment number four:
We will achieve Net Zero carbon emissions across all scopes by 2040.
Our interim milestone is a 50% reduction by 2030, in line with the Race to Zero global goal.
Where our emissions actually come from
With over 4 million pies baked, chilled and delivered from our Bristol bakery every year, plus our restaurants, you might expect our biggest emissions to come from our ovens and fridges. Think again.
Over 93% of our carbon footprint comes from indirect sources, primarily the ingredients we buy and the energy customers use to heat our pies at home. Here's how our baseline of 13,023 tCO2e breaks down:
Scope 1 (gas, LPG, fugitive emissions): 3%
Scope 2 (electricity): 3%
Scope 3 (everything else, such as ingredients, transport, packaging, customer use): 93%
Within Scope 3, purchased goods and services — overwhelmingly the ingredients in our pies — account for 81.4% of total emissions. Beef alone represents 7,502 tCO2e! By comparison, one Moo pie carries the same carbon cost as two Deer & Beer pies, five Free Rangers, nine Wild Shrooms, or sixteen Mooless Moos.
This tells us something important: the big wins won't come from turning off more lights (though we're doing that too). They'll come from what goes inside the pastry.
Where we are right now
Scopes 1 & 2: In 2023–24, we'd already cut these direct emissions by 15% against our baseline. We're slightly behind our trajectory, but energy reduction projects already underway should bring us back on track within the next couple of years.
Scope 3: This is the harder challenge. In 2023, Scope 3 emissions were 8% above baseline — partly due to higher sales volumes, and partly due to increased carbon intensity factors for key ingredients. The bulk of Scope 3 is outside our direct control, which means the path forward requires genuine collaboration: with suppliers, customers, and the wider food industry.
Our four strategic pillars
1. Buildings & Process Energy
Retrofit existing buildings and improve operational efficiencies
This is where we have the most direct control. We've already invested in LED lighting, solar PV on our manufacturing facilities, smarter bakery start-up and shutdown procedures, equipment automation and green energy tariffs. Over the next five years, we're looking at a steam boiler heat recovery system, refrigeration upgrades to low-GWP refrigerants, and the gradual decarbonisation of our cooking and baking processes.
2. Food Sourcing
Collaborate with suppliers to accelerate low carbon food production
Ingredients account for over 76% of our total emissions, so this is the most critical pillar of all. We've completed supplier audits (phases 1 and 2) and have already launched lower-carbon innovations like the Mooless Moo, Deer & Beer and Chana Rama pies. Next up: supplier-specific emissions data for key ingredients, exploration of regenerative sourcing options, and continued product innovation using our internal pie emissions calculator. We'll also keep developing delicious lower-carbon alternatives to help customers make the shift without feeling like they're missing out.
3. Waste, Water & Packaging
Reduce, reuse, recycle — minimise our resource usage
We've already removed plastic windows from our retail pie boxes (saving 3.5 tonnes of plastic a year), eliminated polystyrene from logistics packaging, sent all food waste to anaerobic digestion, and got over 98% of our packaging to widely recyclable. Coming up: a logistics packaging return and reuse portal, further food waste reduction, and continued supply chain packaging collaboration.
4. Travel & Transport
Transition to low/zero carbon transport across the whole supply chain
Travel and transport currently account for around 4.5% of total emissions. We've reviewed our supplier logistics to cut the most carbon-intensive routes, invested in cycling facilities, and introduced a sustainable travel policy. The next steps include transitioning our van fleet to EVs, route optimisation, and working with logistics providers on electrification of outbound deliveries.
The people behind the plan
Sustainability doesn't happen on a spreadsheet, it happens through people. We're investing in carbon literacy across our whole team, training managers to drive change in their areas, and appointing Green Champions. We've even got our own internal COP (the Conference of the Pies!) to keep everyone engaged and accountable.
Our Net Zero commitment sits at board level and is fully integrated into our central business strategy. We've committed to investing at least £1.5m over the next 15 years to keep us fit to thrive in an increasingly changing climate.
An honest note on what's in our control
We won't pretend this is straightforward. The majority of our emissions sit in Scope 3 - in farming systems, supply chains, and consumer behaviour - none of which we can change alone. Industry-wide agriculture reform, the decarbonisation of the national grid, and UK consumers shifting toward lower-carbon diets are all things we depend on but cannot dictate.
What we can do is lead, advocate, collaborate, and keep making pies that make the lower-carbon choice an easy and delicious one.
What's next
Our carbon reduction updates will be published annually in our Impact Report each summer. You can read all our reports and track our progress at pieminister.co.uk/sustainability.
And if you're a supplier, customer, or consumer, our carbon footprint is part of your carbon footprint. We'd love to hear from you:
For the sake of future generations of pie lovers, let's get to Net Zero together.
Love, Tris and Jon
