Profit Meets Planet: Staples Adopts UK’s First Solar-Powered Produce Trailers

Staples Vegetables has become the first fresh produce supplier in the UK to adopt fully battery and solar-powered transport refrigeration, in a landmark move that combines environmental responsibility with commercial innovation.

Image courtesy of Sunswap

The Lincolnshire-based grower has partnered with Sunswap to install two of its Endurance refrigeration units on transport trailers used to deliver vegetables to major retailers. The zero-emission units run primarily on solar energy – providing up to 96% of the power required – and completely eliminate the need for diesel fuel.

Staples expects the technology to deliver significant financial and environmental savings. The company projects a 78% reduction in operational costs compared with diesel refrigeration, and a 27% reduction in total cost of ownership over the next ten years. The switch is also forecast to prevent 256 tonnes of CO₂ emissions – the equivalent of taking 18 cars off the road.

Alastair Gough, Head of Business Development at Sunswap, said: “Staples Vegetables proves you don’t choose between sustainability and the bottom line – you get both with better technology.

"We’ve engineered transport refrigeration from the ground up: zero emissions, yes, but also intelligent systems collecting 1,000 data points to prevent breakdowns before they happen and cloud connected so the fridge gets better over time, not worse.

"This is transport refrigeration for the 21st century – smarter, cleaner, and more profitable.”

Staples made the decision to invest in the units following a 12-day trial in the summer of 2023, during which the Endurance system maintained precise temperature control despite challenging field heat conditions.

The company believes this innovation signals a broader shift within British agriculture towards smarter and more sustainable logistics solutions.

Vernon Read, Managing Director at Staples Vegetables, commented: “These units will save us thousands of litres of diesel annually while keeping our British brassicas farm-fresh from field to fork.

"In today’s market, any supplier not seriously evaluating this technology risks being left behind by both retailers and consumers demanding lower carbon footprints.”

Sunswap’s zero-emission transport refrigeration technology has also been adopted by other leading food and retail brands, including Tesco, Birds Eye, and Samworth Brothers – underlining the growing industry appetite for low-carbon innovation across the supply chain.