Sustainability is becoming increasingly important in today’s world. The word sustainable is something you will hear in almost every industry from telecommunications to transport. Raw materials of various forms are an industrial staple. In fact, tonnes of different raw materials make their way through the average company or factory each day. The sustainability of these raw materials is important to consider, for the longevity of the resource, the environment, and the company all at once. Whether the raw material in question is timber or concrete, sustainability must be one of the primary considerations.
Sustainable Ingredients for Raw Materials
What Sustainability Is (and Isn’t)?
The term sustainability is used in several ways. However, sustainability most often refers to anything you may carry forward or recycle in such a way as to guarantee it for the future.
Sustainability means environmental friendliness, recycling, as well as the responsible use of finite resources.
What sustainability doesn’t have to mean is higher costs or more effort from your business. The switch to sustainable practices can be cheap and effortless. In fact, businesses will sometimes receive incentives for their sustainable efforts through tax discounts or other means.
Businesses that do not rely on sustainable raw materials will ultimately pay the price for it. One example of this includes the Gibson Guitar Corporation paying heavy fines for the use of non-renewable, illegal rosewood. As you can see, the failure to source sustainable resources can backfire in a big way.
Sourcing Sustainable Materials
A business should first conduct a thorough assessment of its current resource use. In today’s world, sustainability is key. However, chances are that wasn’t necessarily the case when company leaders began designing the business model. It’s safe to say that most industries or businesses could work to improve their sustainability efforts.
How much of the resources that flow through your business are considered sustainable? Where businesses are using non-sustainable materials, sustainable alternatives must replace them. These alternatives, whatever the industry, can’t just count as sustainable. Instead, the materials also have to be cost-effective for the business to make any form of sense.
The best news for your business is that viable alternatives are almost always available, regardless of the industry. Materials your business cannot source elsewhere, can often be recycled and put back into the industrial process.
Seeing Sustainable Proof
After a business makes a move towards sustainability or changes some of its resources to alternatives, it is time to conduct a secondary assessment. A secondary assessment will tell you whether or not your business is succeeding – both in resource use and the budget for the project.
Sustainable alternatives impact more than just a cheaper budget. A commitment to sustainable materials can help preserve the environment as well as your brand for future generations.
A lower carbon footprint is something that most mid to large-size businesses have to keep in mind at all times. If you do not make sustainable alternatives part of your business now, there is a chance your revenue could take a hit down the road.
Additional helpful reading: Sustainable Materials Management Basics – Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
What can Fortress Nutrition LLC do for you?
Rest assured that you’re in good hands with Fortress Nutrition. To learn more about how we tailor our blending, ingredient sourcing, logistics, consumer packaging, and other services to meet customer needs, and find out how we can partner with you to ensure compliance with new GMO laws, contact us today.