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Operator Brittany Ferries Awarded 'Green Marine Europe' Label

23rd October 2024
The Breton based ferry operator linking Ireland, France, the UK and Spain is awarded the ‘Green Marine Europe’ label for the fifth year running
The Breton based ferry operator linking Ireland, France, the UK and Spain is awarded the ‘Green Marine Europe’ label for the fifth year running Credit: Green Marine Europe/Brittany Ferries

Operator Brittany Ferries has received the ‘Green Marine Europe’ label (related story) for the fifth year running at a ceremony held in the Belgian capitol.

As previously reported, the Green Marine Europe's label created in 2020 took place in Brussels last week on 15 October, is the result of a collaboration between the non-profit organisation Surfrider Foundation Europe and certification programme Alliance Verte.

It is a rigorous and independent environmental scheme that demands continuous progress from certified shipping companies. Brittany Ferries is one of the scheme’s founding signatories.

Eight environmental criteria

Each participating company undertakes to comply with eight strict environmental criteria, including air and water quality, protection of biodiversity, and waste management.

They must also demonstrate continuous and measurable improvement to retain the label. Each year, companies are assessed on a scale of 1 to 5, and only those able to progress on at least one measure continue to receive the label.

Vincent Coquen, Brittany Ferries’ head of sustainable development, said: “Receiving the Green Marine Europe label for the fifth consecutive year reflects our continuous efforts to improve our environmental performance and encourages us to embark on new challenges.

He added, “Five years ago, Brittany Ferries was one of just six shipping companies to be awarded this label. Today the number of certified shipowners has risen to 25, demonstrating the growing recognition of this programme in the industry.”

Published in Brittany Ferries
Jehan Ashmore

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Jehan Ashmore

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Jehan Ashmore is a marine correspondent, researcher and photographer, specialising in Irish ports, shipping and the ferry sector serving the UK and directly to mainland Europe. Jehan also occasionally writes a column, 'Maritime' Dalkey for the (Dalkey Community Council Newsletter) in addition to contributing to UK marine periodicals. 

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About Brittany Ferries

In 1967 a farmer from Finistère in Brittany, Alexis Gourvennec, succeeded in bringing together a variety of organisations from the region to embark on an ambitious project: the aim was to open up the region, to improve its infrastructure and to enrich its people by turning to traditional partners such as Ireland and the UK. In 1972 BAI (Brittany-England-Ireland) was born.

The first cross-Channel link was inaugurated in January 1973, when a converted Israeli tank-carrier called Kerisnel left the port of Roscoff for Plymouth carrying trucks loaded with Breton vegetables such as cauliflowers and artichokes. The story, therefore, begins on 2 January 1973, 24 hours after Great Britain's entry into the Common Market (EEC).

From these humble beginnings however, Brittany Ferries as the company was re-named quickly opened up to passenger transport, then became a tour operator.

Today, Brittany Ferries has established itself as the national leader in French maritime transport: an atypical leader, under private ownership, still owned by a Breton agricultural cooperative.

Eighty five percent of the company’s passengers are British.

Key Brittany Ferries figures:

  • Turnover: €202.4 million (compared with €469m in 2019)
  • Investment in three new ships, Galicia plus two new vessels powered by cleaner LNG (liquefied natural gas) arriving in 2022 and 2023
  • Employment: 2,474 seafarers and shore staff (average high/low season)
  • Passengers: 752,102 in 2020 (compared with 2,498,354 in 2019)
  • Freight: 160,377 in 2020 (compared with 201,554 in 2019)
  • Twelve ships operating services that connect France, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Spain (non-Covid year) across 14 routes
  • Twelve ports in total: Bilbao, Santander, Portsmouth, Poole, Plymouth, Cork, Rosslare, Caen, Cherbourg, Le Havre, Saint-Malo, Roscoff
  • Tourism in Europe: 231,000 unique visitors, staying 2.6 million bed-nights in France in 2020 (compared with 857,000 unique visitors, staying 8,7 million bed-nights in 2019).