UK entrepreneurs are being slow to recognise the business advantages and opportunities which adopting environmentally friendly behaviour can bring, according to Entrepreneurship UK: 2008 a report by Deloitte, the business advisory firm.

Less than a third (29%) of entrepreneurial businesses are currently undertaking any carbon reduction initiatives, despite more than a quarter of the businesses surveyed by Deloitte believing that environmental issues will have a positive impact by presenting opportunities to exploit new products and services.

Nearly two-fifths (38%) of companies questioned say they are many years away from introducing changes to reduce their carbon footprint, while 33% say they will do so in the next one or two years. Most of the green initiatives being employed by UK entrepreneurs involve waste reduction, recycling and energy conservation. More complex initiatives, such as reducing CO2 emissions for the business as a whole, water conservation and imposing green requirements on their own suppliers are not as popular, perhaps reflecting the greater focus and resource required, which is less readily available in a fast growing entrepreneurial business.

Richard Crane, entrepreneurial business partner at Deloitte, commented: “While there are some notable exceptions, many entrepreneurs still see environmental initiatives as representing a cost to the business rather than an opportunity. The reality is that there are two broad reasons why entrepreneurs should have green issues firmly on their agenda. Firstly, environmental factors are increasingly influencing the buying decisions of both businesses and consumers. For example, pressure from shareholders on large businesses to be responsible corporate citizens means that they increasingly vet the environmental records of their own suppliers.

“Secondly, the growing pressure on businesses and individuals to reduce their environmental impact inevitably brings opportunities for new products and services to help them meet this goal. The innovative nature of entrepreneurs combined with their agility to respond to market opportunities quicker than larger corporates, should place them in an enviable position to capitalise on environmental challenges.”

One company which is embracing the green agenda with open arms is BIOGEN, a Bedfordshire-based business which recycles food waste into a bio-fertiliser for arable crops.  They enable environmentally sustainable large scale food production and generate renewable energy with the residues, heating and powering homes and offices.

Dan Poulson, CEO of BIOGEN, commented: “We viewed the environmental pressures to reduce greenhouse gases and carbon emissions as providing a business opportunity. We have established a business which wins at all levels - recycling waste, generating renewable energy, and making farming greener and more sustainable”. 

“Placing equal importance on being environmentally and commercially responsible not only helps us win business, but also makes BIOGEN an attractive employer which has achieved external recognition and praise from Government and environmental groups”.

“In the UK alone we generate up to 30 millions tonnes of food waste each year, most of which currently goes to landfill. Our new plant in Northamptonshire will process up to 45,000 tonnes of food waste each year from food manufacturing, retailing and municipal sources, and will produce sufficient electricity to continuously power over 1,500 homes locally”.

One tonne of food waste diverted from landfill and processed by Biogen’s anaerobic digestion plant can save the harmful effects of over 900kg of CO2 entering the atmosphere. The same one tonne of food waste can produce 800kg of bio fertiliser, replacing fossil-fuel derived fertilisers for growing food crops.

-Ends-

Notes to editors:

About Deloitte
In this press release references to Deloitte are references to Deloitte & Touche LLP, which is among the country's leading professional services firms.
Deloitte & Touche LLP is the United Kingdom member firm of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu (‘DTT’), a Swiss Verein, whose member firms are legally separate and independent entities.  Please see www.deloitte.co.uk\about for a detailed description of the legal structure of DTT and its member firms.
The information contained in this press release is correct at the time of going to press.