Bosses and staff an eco-friendly bakery are browned off after their wildflower meadow was mown down by council workers.
The eye-catchingly colourful blooms at the Village Bakery on Wrexham Industrial Estate were designed to brighten up the area and help save the endangered Grizzled Skipper butterfly and the bee population which are under threat because of a loss of habitat.
The workforce at the family-run firm were fuming when they found out that a maintenance team from Wrexham County Borough Council razed the strip of flowers on the perimeter of their premises in Coed Aben Road.
Managing Director Robin Jones said: “We have spent the past four years growing poppies, cornflowers and other wild flowers which have now been destroyed in one fell swoop.
“Why cut down something so beautiful? When the rest of the industrial estate is a concrete jungle! We were trying to make it a nicer environment for people to work in.
“We work alongside the North Wales Wildlife Trust to maintain these wildflower beds, to help sustain a diverse eco-system.”
According to Managing Director Robin Jones, it was all the more frustrating because they were so proud of their eco-friendly credentials.
The company has also created a nature reserves in six acres of nearby woodland and spent £25,000 creating two ponds there.
The broad leaf woodland dates back to the 17th century and includes native species like oak, ash and willow.
It’s known there are tawny owls nesting there and it is also an important habitat for greater crested news
In addition, they have fitted a spectacular four storey high living wall of evergreen plants at their Baking Academy and Innovation Centre.
The living wall – believed to be the biggest of its type in Wales – has been planted with hundreds of plants which change colour as the seasons come and go.
The building’s ground-breaking design includes a host of other green features including rainwater harvesting, massive levels of insulation and building panels made of recycled material.
Mr Jones added: “Business has a responsibility to the environment to do our duty and set something aside for these purposes because otherwise the whole area will be covered in concrete.
“We want to show that it is possible for business to live in harmony with nature, for the benefit of both.
“We have a track record of investing in the environment. It’s part of our DNA as a company thanks to our chairman, Alan Jones, who has been a champion of the countryside for years.
“As a company, the Village Bakery has had an environmental policy for a long, long time, long before it became a requirement.
“We feel it is really important that we invest in the future of the planet and our nature reserve project makes a real statement about our commitment to the environment.
“It was therefore all the more galling to become the victim of environmental vandalism.”
