Kepak makes award winning energy efficiency improvements

Background

Kepak is an Irish based food company serving international markets, restaurants and household food service names with prime cuts of meat, food service solutions and ready for market convenience food. The Irish meat division comprises of seven sites with over 2,500 staff operating in Ireland.  

Meat processing is a water and energy intensive operation. Kepak has been investing in energy efficiency since 2018. They have been a founding member of Origin Green since 2012, achieving gold membership for the last three consecutive years.  

In 2020, they committed to the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi), one of the world’s fastest-growing voluntary corporate climate initiatives that provide clear frameworks for setting near-term and net-zero targetsIn 2022, they set, validated and approved Science Based Targets for Scope 1, 2 and 3 by 2030.  

Kepak is committed to reducing absolute Scope 1 & 2 Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions 52.3% by 2030 from a 2018 base year. They also committed to reducing absolute scope 3 GHG emissions from purchased goods and services by 30% by 2030. 

Energy efficiency projects

Kepak focused on first developing systems and a culture whereby energy metrics are managed in the same way as other key business KPIs. They recruited Energy Champions, they organised local cross functional teams and they trained staff with the goal of making sites as energy efficient as possible. They did this before moving on to larger energy efficiency initiatives.  After all, the easiest energy to decarbonise is the energy not consumed! They carried out water and electricity mapping, as well as energy mass balancing, and forensic cost analysis. They also brainstormed new ideas and implemented those ideas.

“KPI management enables us to sustain improvement, and it involves weekly meetings and root cause analysis when consumption increases. This process creates a high level of expertise on sites and is leading to better decision making for larger change projects,” says Jimmy Delaney, R&D Manager, Kepak Group. 

In addition to the local site efficiency management system, the following larger projects were implemented: 

• They installed a wind turbine in Watergrasshill, followed by installing a thermal water tank using excess electricity generated by the turbine. A Robotic Process Automation (RPA) technology was developed to manage the variables within this system.
• They installed a heat recovery system in Cavan and Clonee.
• They installed a fridge plant in Clonee and Kilbeggan using BAT.
• They electrified the hand tool sterilisation process in Watergrasshill and Cavan.
• They started harvesting rainwater in Clonee.
• They installed over 1500 LED lights across the sites.
• They installed a nanofluid in refrigerant to increase heat transfer property. 

Results

Kepak have reduced their energy costs by over €430,000 per year across all seven sites. This is a 12.2% reduction. Carbon emissions have fallen by 41.8% since the baseline year of 2018. Water consumption has reduced by 15.2% in the same period. 

Their decarbonisation goals are on target. The Origin Green obligations are being met. 

These efforts are impacting the company’s culture too as staff have a clearer understanding around carbon emissions, and scope 1 and 2 emissions. Kepak showcases its achievements within sites for staff and visitors to see and their decarbonisation strategy is included in all customer presentations. 

“The change above the waterline, for example wind turbines, solar and heat pumps are critical to decarbonisation. However, getting the foundation of a culture of energy efficiency first is important, so that we are not investing in technology to decarbonise energy that is currently wasted,” explains Jimmy. 

What’s next?

Kepak has more incremental initiatives in the works, such as: 

• Replace all sink taps with aerated valves
• Install instant shut off valves and flow restrictors
• Recycling water from power pack heat exchangers
• Timers on air handling units (AHUs) and spray bar nozzles
• Continue to engage and train staff 

 The larger initiatives that have been signed off, include: 

• Commission Heat Pump in Athleague (November 2025)
• Increase the heat sinks supplied by wind turbine thermal tank in Watergrasshill (February 2026)
• Install 2MW of solar in Athleague (April 2026)
• Back up HVO generators in Athleague and Watergrasshill (Sept 2026)
• Electrification of sterilisers in Athleague (Sept 2026)
• Apply for a maximum export capacity (MEC) licence in Watergrasshill and Athleague (Process commenced). This would allow Kepak to export excess electricity back to the grid via microgeneration 

SEAI Energy Awards 2025

SEAI held its 22^nd Energy Awards in November 2025 and it was attended by over 200 guests. Twelve awards were presented to organisations and individuals who have achieved excellence in energy efficiency and renewable energy.