MINISTER ANNOUNCES McDONALD’S ENVIRONMENTAL AWARDS

Greener than Gold, as McDonald’s go PlatinumMcDonald’s in Northern Ireland is celebrating after nine of its 26 restaurants received a Platinum award in the Green and Growing Awards which were announced by Environment Minister Mark H Durkan MLA at the new state of the art restaurant on Boucher Road.

The McDonald’s restaurants were independently audited by Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful (KNIB) across 10 key environmental categories including waste management, general cleanliness, exterior maintenance and litter, and the awards reflect McDonald’s vision for a cleaner, greener Northern Ireland.

Of the 26 McDonald’s restaurants in Northern Ireland, nine received a Platinum award, 15 merited Gold awards and two achieved silver – a marked increase on last year’s results.

The Environment Minister, Mark Durkan once again confirmed his support for the awards and announced the results of this year’s audit at McDonald’s restaurant on the Boucher Road which features energy efficient technologies including environmentally-friendly air conditioning, low voltage lighting and solar panels.

Environment Minister Mark Durkan commentedEnvironment Minister, Mark H Durkan in presenting the award said:“The business community has a vital role to play in supporting the sustainability of our environment and thereby contributing to our social and economic wellbeing. The Keep NI Beautiful Green and Growing Awards provide an excellent platform for organisations such as McDonald’s to showcase best practice.  The Awards demonstrate how progressive responsible businesses can grasp opportunities for growth that reduce reliance on finite resources and reuse and reduce waste.

“I am most impressed by this new environmentally friendly restaurant  and very encouraged to see that McDonald’s franchisees continue to build upon the success of the 2013 Awards. I commend them, their managements and staff for their on-going commitment to running sustainable businesses with positive local environmental impacts”

Alistair Reid, McDonald’s Director of Franchising for Northern Ireland added: “At McDonald’s we are committed to improving the experience of our customers, our communities and our environment.  We are delighted to have received such positive feedback and results from KNIB, and the presentation of nine platinum awards is testament to the unwavering commitment from our franchisees and their teams.“Across the business our ethos is to work in partnership with our local stakeholders to support the drive for environmental change on issues such as litter and the need to reduce, reuse and recycle within our restaurants. We are looking forward to continuing to work closely with Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful to further strengthen our environmental commitments in the year ahead”

Ian Humphreys, Chief Executive of Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful, said “The enthusiasm with which Green and Growing has been taken on by the McDonald’s staff across Northern Ireland has borne exceptional results in the second year of this programme.  It is an excellent example of what a motivated team can achieve in making a business more efficient and less demanding on our environment.”

The initiative has encouraged McDonald’s staff and franchisees to develop strategies, spearheaded by the restaurants’ Planet Champion, which aim to reduce, reuse and recycle while promoting a culture of sustainability and responsibility towards the environment. Renewed efforts on the part of franchisees have been reflected in this year’s awards which demonstrate McDonald’s commitment to building a cleaner, greener environment across Northern Ireland.