Mol an Óige CNS pupils Elsie Minihane & Cillian Burke with Ennistymon TidyTowns members Mary Byrne and Josephine Quigley.

Fitzpatrick’s SuperValu Ennistymon is encouraging customers to help the environment and raise funds for Ennistymon TidyTowns and Mol an Óige Community National School by availing of its new in-store Reverse Vending Machine.

Ahead of the introduction of Ireland’s Deposit Return Scheme in 2024, Fitzpatrick’s SuperValu Ennistymon is among seven SuperValu stores and four Centra stores nationwide leading the way in offering a Reverse Vending Machine Trial to its customers. The trial began in Fitzpatrick’s SuperValu on 3 February and will run until the end of March.

For the duration of the trial, Fitzpatrick’s SuperValu Ennistymon will incentivise customer usage by splitting a donation of €200 between Ennistymon TidyTown’s committee and Mol an Óige Community National School for every 2,000 containers recycled at the Reverse Vending Machine in-store.

€1,000 is the maximum donation per month, therefore a €2,000 total donation by the end of March is possible.

Products accepted in the scheme are, beverage PET plastic bottles and aluminum cans between 150ml and 3 litres. Products excluded from the scheme are bottles and containers for dairy-based products i.e. milk, yoghurt plus all household plastics and food aluminium cans.

949,000 beverage containers annually can be taken in the newly installed machine in Ennistymon.

Store owner, Jackie Fitzpatrick said they were committed “to playing our part to reduce our impact on the environment. We are continuously making positive changes to give customers the chance to shop more sustainably and in turn help us build more sustainable communities. We are delighted that we are giving our customers easy access to a Reverse Vending Machine ahead of a Deposit Return Scheme being introduced nationally next year. The trial will empower customers to increase their recycling in a practical way and reduce their carbon footprint, as well as enhancing instore customer experience. We look forward to paving the way for the roll-out of the scheme in SuperValu stores nationwide”.

Fitzpatrick’s SuperValu Ennistymon has also introduced LED lighting which uses 60% less energy than the standard bulbs. The upgraded lighting has contributed to an in-store carbon footprint reduction of 7.2% and energy savings to power 15 homes annually. New digital price tags have also been introduced to the store which save 7,000 sheets of paper annually.

Work is currently underway to upgrade the refrigeration in store to energy efficient fridges with doors, which will see a further 10.8% reduction of carbon and save enough energy to power a further 23 homes annually.

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If you’re here, you care about County Clare. So do we. Did you rely on us for Covid-19 updates, follow our election coverage, or visit The Clare Echo every week for breaking news and sport? The Clare Echo invests in local journalism and we want to safeguard its future in our county. By becoming a subscriber you are supporting what we do, will receive access to all our premium articles and a better experience, while helping us improve our offering to you. Subscribe to clareecho.ie and get the first six months for just €3 a month (less than 75c per week), and thereafter €8 per month. Cancel anytime, limited time offer. T&Cs Apply. www.clareecho.ie.

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