The Cheese Shop at Dewlay has taken another step to being greener as it moves away from plastic bags.
In a step to be proactive and aware of its environmental impact, the Cheese Shop at Dewlay no longer offers plastic carrier bags, in what is thought to be a big leap forward for the shop and indeed for retailers in Garstang.
Setting the marker out earlier this month, the Cheese Shop will only offer paper bags as well as its own Bag for Life.
“We see small and large retailers offering plastic bags. While they may charge, we decided to take it a step further and say no to plastic carriers full stop,” commented Dewlay’s Laura Barnes.
“We know that some people will come in and expect a bag, but we felt it important for our part to help change attitudes,” she added.
While still providing small paper bags, the shop also offers its own Bag for Life. Back in 2016 the company ran a competition for local school children to design a bag for life, the winning entry was won by a pupil from St Mary’s Primary School in Chipping, and is now printed on a bag for life with the logo ‘I Love Cheese’.
Known for being first off the post in the area when it comes to the environment, Dewlay Cheesemakers also have a 2mW wind turbine. With its blades first turning back in 2010, it was ground breaking in the UK dairy industry to look at renewable energy of this type and at this scale.
Opened by the then Minister of State for Energy and Climate Change; Charles Hendry, Dewlay also ran a local school competition to name the turbine, which was won by a local child from St Michael’s on Wyre School, who named the turbine ‘Castle of the Clouds’.
“We are an energy hungry business, so we are constantly looking at ways to offset this in anyway that we reasonably can, and where possible involve the local community and schools. We have other ideas underway too for our shop so we really are trying to set the marker out for other businesses in the area,” added Laura.