The Dalton-headquartered firm, whose brands include Harringtons and Wagg pet foods, said the planting was part of its ambition to become the UK’s most sustainable pet food manufacturer.

IPN’s main manufacturing site is at Dalton in North US and – as part of the one million tree pledge – the business is partnering with the nearby Thorp Perrow Arboretum as the site

for its commitment to have a tree for every employee. A team from IPN visited the Arboretum to plant the first group including three Horse Chestnut Trees (Aesculus Hippocastanum) which are currently on the Red List and classified as vulnerable to extinction.

CEO James Lawson said: “As part of our Positive Pawprint initiative, we have already been verified as achieving carbon negative status by Carbon Footprint Ltd – the first major UK pet

food manufacturer to reach this goal. However, this success has just spurred us on to become even more sustainable and set this new goal of planting one million trees.

“Thorp Perrow is the ideal partner as, in addition to its national reputation, it also warmly welcomes visitors with dogs.”

The Thorp Perrow Arboretum is home to some 4,500 trees and plants, including five national plant collections for Ash, Walnut, Laburnum and Lime trees as well as the Smoke Bush shrub.

Owner Sir Henry Ropner said: “We are delighted to be working with Inspired Pet Nutrition as part of their carbon negative initiative. We have been gradually replacing the Horse Chestnuts

at the entrance to ensure we can offer our visitors a beautiful display of blossom in the spring and conkers for children to collect in the autumn. These specialist Horse Chestnuts, along with the other trees sponsored by IPN, will prove a great addition to the collection and will absorb significant quantities of CO2 as they mature and grow.

“We are delighted to be part of ensuring vulnerable species of trees continue to thrive in Great Britain, and being a destination for dog lovers!”