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Our Green Story: The Torridon

28/09/2020

 

Situated in remote Wester Ross, AA Five Red Star hotel The Torridon offers an abundance of initiatives for the conscious traveller. A place like no other, the hotel blends glamour with a feeling of homeliness, beautifully set against the natural playground of the Scottish Highlands. It’s ideal for those wanting to clear their head, reset and re-energize with exhilarating walks, wildlife spotting, and stargazing in the big skies.

With a commitment to being self-sufficient and working in harmony with nature, The Torridon is inspired by its beguiling surroundings to offer guests the perfect getaway to immerse themselves in nature, providing an antidote to city living and the pressures of the daily grind.

Fresh produce is sourced steps away from The Torridon Farm and two-acre Kitchen Garden, which provides almost 60% of the produce used in the hotel’s refined 1887 restaurant, where head chef Paul Green creates a simple menu inspired by the natural larder of the Highlands. Local produce is also utilised in The Torridon’s casual dining restaurant Bo & Muc, where wholesome dishes are served.

Both restaurants were recently redesigned by The Torridon’s co-owner Rohaise Rose-Bristow, using natural materials sourced from independent UK suppliers to embrace comfort, design and quality whilst maintaining the hotel’s elegance and history.

In order to reduce its carbon footprint, The Torridon has eliminated all single use plastics from the resort, alongside recycling or composting the majority of its waste including glass, coffee grinds and shreddings. The ultimate goal is to achieve carbon neutrality in a reasonable timeframe.

Utilising biomass energy that is sourced from local timber to safeguard biodiversity, chipping on site to create fuel for the 58-acre estate’s heating and water, and a flexible forestry plan in place enables the team to harvest and plant new trees throughout the year, while pure water is extracted from a bore hole on the estate, saving the use of 10,000 plastic bottles per year and large Cowshed dispensers are used in the rooms, wiping out the use of 40,000 toiletry bottles per year. Water-based cleaning was implemented in August 2019, using chemical-free ENJO products that utilise sustainable fabrics that have been developed to deep clean with no chemicals or additional products, reducing plastic waste and chemical deposits in the waterways. 

Sustainability is not just about the environment and The Torridon allocates approximately 5% of net profits to charitable donations and the family have personally contributed to local community projects for first responders, the rebuilding of the community centre and local charities, alongside hospitality initiatives that support the wellbeing of the industry.

For those wanting to visit The Torridon without flying, no-plane pioneers can venture from London and southern Scotland to Inverness on a Caledonian Sleeper train, before hiring an electric car and meandering through the raw beauty of the hills to the hotel, where regular EV and Tesla chargers are available for guests.

 

The Torridon’s sustainability efforts have been recognised by the Carbon Trust, Green Tourism and the hotel will soon be accredited by Onno Poortier’s NOW scheme. It has also recently pledged its commitment to helping the local ecosystem by becoming a member of the Wester Ross UNESCO biosphere, which supports local initiatives such as the Beinn Eighe and Loch Maree Islands National Nature Reserve.

Find out more about The Torridon at www.thetorridon.com/