Before switching on the wind turbines on October 4, Roddick said The Body Shop had pledged to invest in energy capacity at Bryn Titli equivalent to electricity consumed by its production headquarters at Littlehampton in Sussex. However, The Body Shop's investment in the Welsh project is starting with a minority stake -- covering just over half of its headquarters electricity requirements. "I am delighted that The Body Shop has been able to take this important step towards our company's ultimate goal of energy self-sufficiency in the UK," Roddick said. "We believe passionately in the need for energy conservation, but becoming environmentally sustainable also means replacing what energy we must use with renewables."
The company's "green" credentials have come in for a battering over recent months as criticisms have been raised about the degree to which The Body Shop fulfils all its claims. The controversy appears to have made little impact on sales, however. Drawing an analogy with wind development Roddick said: "Of course wind energy developers have their critics. But as The Body Shop occasionally discovers, it does not matter how much you do, there will always be small-minded minorities, vested interests or politically motivated individuals who seek to undermine progress." One way the critics could be silenced was by developers meeting their arguments head on, making sure that democratic processes were always respected and by adhering to the strictest environmental and social guidelines, she continued. "I believe that we have shown that here."
