A popular animal hospital in Kent has earned a prestigious national environmental award which shines a light on its eco-friendly practices and sustainability programmes.
Linnaeus-owned Cinque Ports Vets, which has practices in Ashford, Hawkhurst, Lydd, Rye and Tenterden, has been accredited as a silver level practice by Investors in the Environment (iiE), just two years since it achieved bronze level.
The iiE is a nationwide initiative that encourages firms to transform their working practices to introduce more environmentally friendly, cleaner and more sustainable methods and systems.
Luca Gaffuri, a veterinary surgeon and green champion at Cinque Ports Vets, said: “It’s been a fantastic team effort to achieve Silver level status.
“Reaching this next level has given everyone at Cinque Ports Vets a real boost but we won’t rest on our laurels and will aim to achieve the iiE Green Award, the highest award it offers.”
The iiE audit report highlighted how three new members of staff are now supporting the Green Champion, and that the oil fuelled boiler at Rye has been replaced with a new bio-fuel boiler which has a much higher efficiency in terms of emissions.
Additionally, Cinque Ports Vets has made several switches for more sustainable alternatives in order to reduce unnecessary waste. This includes the introduction of reusable scrub hats and switching incontinence pads and absorbent kennel liners for newspapers, shredded paper and washable towels.
Cinque Ports Vets has also introduced good data review processes for anaesthetic gases, with clear evidence of this informing action planning, such as identifying changes one site had made in terms of anaesthetic gas usage that other sites could make to improve their low-flow efficiency.
Other sustainability measures include addressing travel through the development of a Travel Plan and surveying commuter methods.
Luca added: “This silver accreditation is further proof the changes are having a meaningful impact across our animal hospitals.”
For more information on Cinque Ports Vets, which has practices in Ashford, Hawkhurst, Lydd, Rye and Tenterden, visit: https://www.cinqueportsvets.co.uk/.
ENDS
CAPTION: Cinque Ports Vets has been accredited as a silver level practice by national accreditation scheme Investors in the Environment.
NOTE TO EDITORS: Cinque Ports Vets, which has practices in Ashford, Hawkhurst, Lydd, Rye, Tenterden and Wye, is part of Linnaeus.
Linnaeus is a community of more than 50 primary care and 17 referral veterinary practices based in the UK and Ireland.
Part of the Mars family of businesses, the group comprises almost 6,000 employees and some of the country’s finest specialists, veterinary clinicians and nursing teams in the profession and together they are committed to excellence and delivering top quality care to their patients.
The future of veterinary medicine is at the heart of everything they do and this is demonstrated through investment in their teams, facilities, equipment and continual professional development of its clinical and non-clinical staff. This includes a two-year support programme for new graduates, mental health first aid training for all practices and comprehensive nursing training programmes.
Through its flexible and supportive culture, their teams can focus on delivering top quality care and contributing towards making A Better World for Pets. For more information about Linnaeus, visit www.linnaeusgroup.co.uk.
As part of the family-owned Mars Veterinary Health group, Linnaeus is committed to its purpose—A BETTER WORLD FOR PETS®—because pets make a better world for us.
For more information, please contact Chris Box at R&Co Communications on 01926 888308 or by emailing
Issued March 2024
