Sustainability

MeadowSweet works hard to be as sustainable as possible and is constantly trying to make the right choices to run and grow a sustainable business. We are currently working with Southampton University to prepare our first Sustainability Report guided by the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). British flowers eliminate air miles and have been found to have a 90% lower carbon footprint than imported ones, Lancaster University, 2018.

Sophie has a Masters in Sustainable Development and uses 100% British flowers and 100% British (and occasionally Irish) foliage for her posies, using then best of what is available locally and seasonally. As well as supporting large-scale British growers, she uses smaller independent growers and grows her own.

For packaging we use unbleached cardboard with 70% recycled/ 30% FSC content, biofilm stickers, natural greaseproof biodegradable paper, and 100% recycled paper. We use natural jute twine and stems are sent in an biodegradable clay-based gel in a biodegradable bag with natural rubber band and the gel can safely be washed down the sink. Our posy glass jars are British-made with >40% recycled content. We send out jars with our orders and with the first order of a new subscription because we feel it is important the flowers have the right sized vase to show them off properly. Unwanted posy jars can be put in the recycling like a jam jar, but please remove the ribbon first for general waste. The ribbon is currently polyester and we will be looking into bamboo ribbons for when we need to reorder. Currently any larger jars we sometimes use are imported and made from new glass. These are, however, very useful rubber-seal storage jars so we will send the lids out too so you can reuse the jars in the kitchen if you wish to. Jars can go in the dishwasher, ribbon and all, to be ready to reuse. In our gardens and cutting garden we compost all green waste and plant lots of bee-friendly plants and foliage.

MeadowSweet is proud to support the charity Rewilding Britain by donating 1% of its gross annual sales to help promote and increase the network of wild spaces across Britain. We have chosen to do this because we feel we need to return our environment to a more natural state to protect ecosystems and the health of the planet. We chose not to join 1% For the Planet at this time because we are a small business and we would rather our money went directly to our chosen charity.

To find out more about Sophie, read our About us page.

You can choose to buy a British flower posy as a gift or a Subscription to enjoy British flowers throughout the year.