Galleon Stores

Happy New Year to all our customers from Gary, Kay and all the staff.

We introduced a number of initiatives in 2019 to reduce our plastic waste and develop a more environmentally friendly, sustainable business. The initiatives covered areas such as packaging, gardening, new products and more.

We’ve included some of our key initiatives below:

• Milk, juice, yoghurts and milkshakes now sold in glass bottles
• Returnable plastic bags for our bread from Hallett’s The Bakers
• Support local wildlife – advice on feeding, gardening and corridors
• Sheep wool compost to replace peat and coir varieties
• One plastic container for life with new top-up cleaning products
• Palm oil and cruelty free, vegan soaps and shampoos
• Beeswax for DIY reusable wraps, homemade soaps and candles

A big thank you to our customers for supporting us in these initiatives throughout 2019. We hope that you will continue to support our plans in 2020 and are keen for you to share any feedback and suggestions for other initiatives you would like us to introduce.

For more information, pop in and speak to Gary or Kay, give us a call or contact us here. You can also keep up to date with new initiatives on our dedicated page here.

As we approach planting time in the UK, have you considered what compost you will be using? Concerns have been growing for many years now over the environmental impacts of using peat-based composts. See this article for example, on a 2010 consultation by the government to phase out horticultural use of peat.

At the end of last year, we introduced varieties of Peat Free Wool Compost from Dalefoot Composts available at £7.99 per 30L bag. Made from a blend of sheep’s wool and bracken, the compost is made wholly in the UK and is a ‘professional growing medium with consistent performance and reliable results. Read more on Why Peat Free? here.

Based in Cumbria, in addition to the sale of peat-free composts Dalefoot are also working on restoration projects more locally. They shared an update on one of their current restoration projects on Dartmoor:

‘The site on Dartmoor that we are restoring is a former peat works complete with its very own railway siding which connected the moors through to the main railway line. The work we are doing on the site has consisted of manipulating the hydrology of the site to raise the water table instead of diverting water off the site all the time. This will allow peat forming vegetation to grow in the small pools that are now visible on the site as further drains continue to be blocked. We are undertaking this restoration work using specially adapted diggers and machinery that can track over the peatland without degrading it further.

Results of this restoration work will consist of locking up carbon back into the bog rather than releasing it, better quality water that comes off the moors and then down into the water table, natural flood management as well as restoration of a uniquely important eco-system for biodiversity and flora.’

You can find out more about the work that is being done to protect peatland here.

Any questions? Pop in and speak to Gary, give us a call or contact us here.