M&S takes on low-emission Dearman refrigerated truck

High street retailer Marks & Spencer has leased a Dearman Hubbard truck, with a refrigeration unit powered by liquid nitrogen, which has the potential to cut CO2 emissions by up to 95 per cent compared to a diesel-powered unit.

Used for its chilled deliveries, the liquid nitrogen-powered transport refrigeration unit (TRUs) is zero emission.

M&S is already familiar with liquid nitrogen TRUs; it had hundreds of Polarstream trailers 20 years ago, and has taken on 15 Frostcruise units in the last four years. Last year saw M&S use more than one million litres of liquid nitrogen.

M&S’s aim is to quantify the costs and environmental benefits of Dearman’s technology before leading to a nationwide roll-out.

M&S’s last 10-year sustainability plan already saw it become the world’s first and only carbon neutral major retailer. It now plans to go even further in cutting its carbon emissions and in June 2017 launched its new sustainability plan- Plan A 2025. The retailer has over 1,000 stores across the UK and 60% of its UK turnover is from food sales.

Anthony Whitehouse, M&S Fleet Engineer, said: “Our latest sustainability plan is ambitious and includes bold new science-based target to further improve the efficiency of our operations. Our chilled delivery trucks have a role to play in that and we believe Dearman’s transport refrigeration unit could help us meet our emissions targets.”