Sustainability & Regenerative Hospitality

Our Commitment to Sustainability & Our Contribtion to Building a Better Future!

As part of the Cuilcagh Lakelands Geopark Business Sustainability Programme that we successfully completed on the 15th November, 2022. We at Hawthorn Lodge B&B - Belturbet, have implemented a series of Green Team Action Plans to help us strive towards achieving a more sustainable future.

Our certificates for completing the Cuilcagh Lakelands Geopark Business Sustainability Programme, November 2022.

Pauline and Samantha Rodgers.

A Mother & Daughter team!

The above video footage of Hawthorn Lodge B&B - Belturbet and about our sustainability practices was taken by Clarrissa and Tara, #Cuilcagh Lakelands Geopark - September 2023.

Our Commitment to Food Sustainability

Hawthorn Lodge B&B - Belturbet, is a 4-Star Failte Ireland Tourist Board Approved property.

We are a family-run business and have been welcoming guests from all over the world since 2001.

Having successfully completed Failte Ireland's Taste the Island Taste of Place programme, we have signed a pledge of commitment to sourcing and promoting local and Irish food and beverages.

We also grow our very own produce from seed in our polytunnels and raised beds located within the grounds of Hawthorn Lodge. Whereby, you will find an abundance of seasonal fresh fruit, vegetables and herbs that are specifically grown so that we can lovingly create dishes for our guests to enjoy. A real field to fork experience!

Being passionate about the environment and our food, we are strong advocates of fighting nature with nature. Therefore, we do not use any form of pesticides.

Our Commitment to Food Waste Management

At Hawthorn Lodge B&B - Belturbet, we are passionate about food waste management and it is incorporated into our everyday practice.

With our philosophy being to reduce, re-use and recycle, we have various methods of dealing with food waste and pride ourselves on the fact that no food waste is sent to landfill. Our methods of food waste disposal ensures that we save time and money on not having to use an external food waste disposal company, whilst helping to save the environment.

All food waste is collected via a compost caddy and then is added to our lockable waste disposal bin.

The contents of the waste disposal bin is then added to our Bokashi bins, (Bokashi is a Japanese fermentation method) and the food waste breaks down in the bins over a two-week period. The liquor from the Bokashi bins is used to feed our plants!

Once the two-week period is completed, the contents of the Bokashi bins are added to our Hotbin composter. The Hotbin composter is a hot method of composting and it breaks down the food contents, even cooked food, including meat and bones! Hence, after a certain period of time and with a few items added such as, cardboard, weeds etc... there is an abundance of compost to use around the garden. So nothing is wasted!

We also have several three-bay cold composting bays too for our general garden waste, including vegetable waste too!

Our Commitment to Food Waste

At Hawthorn Lodge B&B - Belturbet, we are passionate about sustainability, food waste, our carbon footprint, greenhouse gas emissions and the world around us...

As food is a significant contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions, to eliminate food waste, guests are given pre-printed menus to choose their breakfasts for the following morning. As food is prepared and cooked to order, having pre-printed menus ensures that there is no excess food wasted. The pre-printed menus are printed on recycled paper and are composted on-site.

As we cater for a wide range of dietary requirements, we also have breakfast menus available for guests to peruse in several different languages too!

As part of the green action plans, all food waste is recycled to make compost, so no food waste goes to landfill.

Our Commitment to Supporting the Local Community

At Hawthorn Lodge B&B - Belturbet, our mission is to try and help support our local community by shopping for produce that we cannot grow ourselves. Purchasing from local artisan producers and local craft markets, as well as the local supermarkets. Therefore, buying only Irish and locally crafted produce.

All of the meats we buy are Irish and are from the local butchers in Ballyconnell, County Cavan.

Even our free-range eggs are from hens that are lovingly cared for and sourced locally!

We do have a "food directory" available for our guests to peruse, so that you can be rest assured and have the knowledge and confidence that you know where exactly our food originates from!

At Hawthorn Lodge, we have a series of Action Plans in place that are periodically updated.

As we are constantly striving to look at ways of becoming more sustainable and to be aware of new and currrent innovations in helping us to become a more sustainable business, one of our main action plan objectives is to purchase Solar PV Panels. Therefore, we can generate energy from the solar panels and be more energy efficient. Thus, saving on energy costs too!

Our Plans for a More Sustainable Future!

Energy and Water Conservation

At Hawthorn Lodge B&B - Belurbet, we have a series of green team action plans in place. Here are just a few examples of the steps we have and are taking in our bid for energy and water conservation:

All light bulbs are A+ and A++ energy LED bulbs.'
To save on water, energy and detergent being released into the environment, guests can help us achieve our goals by re-using their towels. However, if you require fresh towels, we are happy to change them if you so wish.
We currently harvest rain water to use to water our plants in our polytunnels, raised beds and anything else in the garden!
We also have a polytunnel specifically for drying laundry too.

Recycling and Single-Use Plastics

As part of being a "Booking.com Level 3 Travel Sustainable Property," we have introduced action plans to make our business more travel sustainable:

We no longer supply guests with single-use plastic water bottles. Therefore, reducing the amount of plastic being discarded into the recycling bin. Guests now have glass bottles of filtered water in their bedrooms.
Single-use plastic bottles of shampoo, conditioner, showergels and individual soaps are currently being phased out and replaced with larger refillable bottles of shampoo, conditioner, showergels and liquid soaps for our guests to use during their stay with us.
All waste such as cardboard, paper etc, from waste bins is separated and composted. Other items that are usuitable for composting will be distributed into the recycling bin.
All food waste is composted on-site!
We use the Bokashi method and the Hotbin method of composting.
In our Guest Welcome folder, we have also highlighted to our guests how they too can help contribute to reducing our carbon footprint during their stay with us and the small ways they can help us in becoming a more sustainable and energy efficient. For examples:
, Turn off lights in rooms when not in use.
Unplug chargers and devices when not in use.
Be mindfull of leaving windows open when the heating is on.
Be mindful of leaving taps running.
Re-using towels.

Regenerative Tourism

"As the principles of sustainability reflects the environmental, economic and socio-cultural aspects of tourism development. Regenerative tourism is seen as the next step after sustainable tourism and focuses on the things in life that really amtter. By statisfying the needs to the local communiities and contributing to a better life for local people. Therefore, communities and tourism sites continuously re-new themselves. "

(Dr A Postma. CBI 2022).

With this in mind, at Hawthorn Lodge B&B - Belturbet, our thoughts, actions and goals now turn to Leave No Trace - Ireland.

Leave No Trace - Ireland

Hawthorn Lodge B&B - Belturbet, completed the Leave No Trace Ireland Certified Awareness course.

Our green team action plan aims are to encourage guests to adopt the seven principles of Leave No Trace.

There is literature available for guests to peruse during their stay with us with reference to Leave No Trace.

There is on display, a poster detailing how long different objects take to decompose.

This information is aimed at making us more mindfull of how we discard objects and pieces of food as well as respecting the natural landscape around us, including the wildlife and animals and leaving it the same way as we arrived at our destination.

Our Environment and Bio-Diversity

We aim to protect the environment around us by implementing the following action plans:

We will plant more trees, including fruit trees, to off-set our own carbon footprint.
We have encouraged more species of insects by creating two bug hotels made from wooden pallets and other recycleable garden materials and garden waste. We currently plan to build more bug hotels.
We will sow more wild flower seeds and have more dedicated areas of generally mowed grassland converted into wild flower meadows.

This particular videography was taken by Helen at Back Office Marketing for the Cuilcagh Lakelands Geopark - January 2024.

View of Lough Arden from the grounds of Hawthorn Lodge B&B - Belturbet.

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Hawthorn Lodge B&B - Belturbet's Official Website!