Sustainability & Responsibility

As a leading bakery manufacturer in NZ, we take our environmental responsibility seriously. Which is why it is our aim to progressively reduce our environmental impact and adopt a continuous improvement sustainability model.

To realise our goals, GWF Baking New Zealand has embarked on a four-year sustainability programme to reduce and eliminate waste across its supply chain. Within the packaging program our goals are;

• 100% of all our packaging to be reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025 or earlier.
• 70% of our plastic packaging to be recycled or compostable by 2025.
• 50% average recycled content to be included across all packaging by 2025.
• Problematic and unnecessary single-use plastic packaging will be phased out through design, innovation or introduction of alternatives.

Packaging accounts for roughly 4%¹ of the total carbon foot print of a loaf of bread. The major contributors include growing the ingredients, the baking process, and transportation including, ingredients to the bakery, baked products to retailers and into consumers homes.

This is why GWF is also looking at how our business can create a sustainable supply chain and maximise the efficient use of energy, water, non-renewable resources and materials. While minimising waste and emissions that are discharged from our facilities.

The packaging of your favourite bakery products such as Tip Top, Ploughmans Bakery and Bürgen can already be recycled. Our bags are made from a type of plastic that not only protects the product from going off quickly but once used, can then be recycled into plastic fence posts, vehicle stops and even vegetable garden frames.

GWF joined the Soft Plastics Recycling scheme in November 2016² as we believe it’s important to help kiwis easily recycle their soft plastics. You can find soft plastic recycling bins at many supermarkets and other retail outlets across New Zealand.

Being a baker of a number of NZ’s favourite products, we want to ensure that not only are our products the best quality but that our ingredients are ethically and sustainably sourced and that our products are balanced and nutritious for you and your family.
Below are some of the things we’ve changed to help you make better food choices;

• Launching the first packaged bread to have a 5 Health Star Rating – Burgen Fabulous Fibre.
• Higher Fibre through Tip Top Supersoft High Fibre (making it easier for parents to get more fibre in their children’s diet) and Burgen Fabulous Fibre (contains over 30% of an adult’s daily fibre requirements in a serve).

How we plan to make changes in the coming years;

• Only using 100% cage free eggs by 2023.
• Reduced the sodium levels in our bread to 380mg/ 100g by 2022.

At the heart of GWF is a mandate to act as a responsible corporate citizen. One of the ways that we do this is through our relationship with KidsCan, which was formed in 2010³.

With the generous help of our distribution partners. GWF is able to deliver thousands of Tip Top Supersoft High Fibre and Tip Top Oatilicious toast loaves every week to schools across New Zealand. Ensuring that many kiwi kids who would have started their days with no breakfast, can start their day right.

• Over the last 10 years we’ve delivered just over 1 million loaves⁴ to schools across the country as part of the KidsCan breakfast club.
• GWF offers all its staff paid volunteer leave which can be used to give back to KidsCan or a charity of their choice.

This data is not live and is subject to change. Last updated 29/09/21.

1. GWF Baking White bread loaf 700g Life-Cycle assessment, greenhouse gas emissions.
2. Based on when the membership was validated.
3. Based on first donation payment made January 2010.
4. Based on internal sales data from 2010 till 2021.