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commercial production facilities – both locally in Norwich, and for other universities.”

Sustainability initiatives

Focusing on environmental initiatives, Chris first reflects on the effect of recent extreme weather, mainly the heatwaves being seen across the UK.“ Our crop protection products are undoubtedly linked to the climate and crops being grown – that said, our industry runs in cycles so when one region is impacted by reduced rainfall it is likely that others have above average rainfall, creating a balance,” he explains.“ A short-term heatwave or increased rainfall doesn’ t tend to impact the demand as much as expected, as the weeds are normally still present at some level and will require being controlled.”

Exploring how it can use water on its 115- acre site, Briar has been working with a local utility provider on its wastewater reduction project, which has led to the effective collection and testing of run-off water before it is used or released – considerably reducing water demand from other sources.“ We also have a solar farm onsite, we have upgraded our gas-fired engine to a more modern and efficient system, and we’ re in the process of transforming lighting around the site to more energy efficient LED technology,” adds Chris.

As Briar looks ahead to the second half of 2026 and beyond, Chris reveals certain trends he has noticed across the industry at present.“ I think working capital has become a bigger issue for most companies over the last couple of years, and we’ re seeing this in our business, with companies not holding enough inventory to respond to increased demand,” he discloses.“ This is putting pressure across the chain to expedite supply of raw materials or adjustments in shipping

Veolia UK: Proud partners of Briar Chemicals

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• Collecting waste, from bulk liquids to small packaged waste

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• Waste recovery to improve recycling rates, such as recovery of metals from bulk streams

Veolia Ellesmere Port high temperature incinerator( HTI) Our Ellesmere Port HTI is one of Europe’ s most advanced facilities, permitted to handle a wide range of hazardous waste streams with care and precision.

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