How we run our business
We’re constantly looking for better ways to do business – focusing on our impact in the UK as an employer, a manufacturer and a certified B Corp.
Everything we do at our rice mill, factory and head office in Rainham, Essex, is closely managed, with investment in state-of-the-art technologies and initiatives to take care of the environment and our colleagues.
Our manufacturing processes are designed to deliver the highest standards of food safety, quality and flavour – while reducing energy and water use, cutting emissions and avoiding waste to landfill.
Sustainable manufacturing
Operating our sites responsibly
Measuring our carbon footprint
Our total carbon footprint calculation includes Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions, covering the direct emissions from our two manufacturing sites and head office, as well as the emissions associated with the energy we purchase.
Reducing our emissions
We reduced the energy intensity of our manufacturing sites by 7.3% between 2024 and 2025 by investing in new technologies. Overall, we’ve delivered a 25.4% improvement in energy intensity against the 2018 baseline, equivalent to 152 kg CO2/tonne.
Renewable energy
We’ve used 100% renewable electricity for our manufacturing since 2020 (market-based in line with GHG Protocol accounting methods). This means our Scope 2 emissions from purchased electricity are effectively accounted for as zero.
Scope 3 emissions
We calculated our Scope 3 emissions in 2023, covering our supply chain, transportation, waste, use of our products and other sources. Following the GHG Protocol Standards, our Scope 3 emissions amounted to 207,884 tonnes of CO2e, with the greatest contributor being the rice we source from farmers.
Reducing waste
We prioritise preventing waste, and where waste is generated, we ensure it is managed responsibly. Food waste is reused, including as animal feed, with the remaining waste sent to anaerobic digestion. In 2025, 100% of our operational waste was diverted from landfill, with 80% recycled and the remainder treated through recovery processes.
Managing our water impacts
We use a closed-loop evaporative system to capture, cool and reuse water condensate from steam generation, helping to reduce water use and energy losses. Our wastewater is managed in line with trade effluent consents and treated by our wastewater partners, with water reused where appropriate.
Packaging
We’re constantly evolving our packaging to
reduce its impacts, cut down on plastic and enable recycling.
High-quality packaging plays an important role in protecting our products and maintaining shelf life, helping to reduce food waste –a significant contributor to climate change.
We aim to optimise our packaging to be as lightweight as possible while safeguarding product quality, safety and shelf life. Reducing plastic is an issue our customers care about, and we continue to work closely with our packaging suppliers to address this.
We’re taking a considered, evidence-led approach, recognising that eliminating plastic packaging entirely is not currently viable without compromising product protection. We have set clear commitments to ensure our packaging is 100% recyclable ahead of the introduction of consistent kerbside collections across the UK in 2027.
Our employees
Our team brings together people from many different backgrounds and cultures, with each making a unique contribution to our company. We value every one of our around 300 direct employees, spanning manufacturing, sales, IT, HR, marketing and sustainability.
Embedding our values
We’re driven by optimism and curiosity about food, life and people. Treating our diverse team with dignity and respect is fundamental to how we do business. Our company values bring us together to strengthen our culture and promote well-being and productivity. We work to embed these values into day-to-day life at Tilda.Community
Cooperative, open-minded, team player.
We care about people across all of the communities that we serve, from our own team to the farmers we partner with. We are growing a future where community can thrive.
Respect
Transparent, authentic and honest.
We celebrate all cultures and champion inclusivity. This means we take diversity, equity and inclusion seriously to build trust within our team.
Ownership
Responsible for our actions.
We take ownership of our impact on people and the planet. We value transparency and ensure credibility by making sure that claims are backed up with evidence and data.
Productivity
Target-driven.
We are always moving forwards, looking to make progress wherever we can. We strive to meet sustainability targets and uphold our commitments.
Caring for our team
Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI)
Tilda serves diverse and multicultural communities and the diversity of our workforce is a strength. We’re an equal opportunities employer working to establish a values-based hiring process that supports DEI. We maintain a high level of job sharing to support flexible working opportunities.
Keeping our employees safe and healthy
Protecting the safety and health of our employees and stakeholders is a priority and we’re constantly improving our approach. We are committed to zero reportable safety incidents across our sites. In 2025, we experienced one reportable incident.
Protecting human rights
We’re committed to upholding human rights in our operations and supply chain as a member of the UK Rice Association and the All India Rice Exporters’ Association. We did not identify any modern slavery risks in our operations or supply chains in 2023.
Supporting employee wellbeing with Mind
We continue to build our partnership with Mind, the mental health charity, to support our employees and wider community.
In 2024, we were a major sponsor of a large public festival organised by Mind. We also now provide monthly on-site drop-in sessions, delivered by an independent mental health expert, where employees can talk openly about anything that may be affecting them – from financial concerns to wider personal challenges.
Alongside this, we’re investing in training for our managers, helping them recognise early signs that someone in their team may be struggling. We’ll be rolling out Mental Health First Aid training over the coming year.
