Responsible Production & the Circular Economy

Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE: HRL) and IGS Solar have started construction on a solar energy project at the Hormel Foods Swiss American Sausage Company facility in Lathrop, Calif. The project is slated for completion in July.

This year for Earth Week, Mars is taking a look back at some of the Healthy Planet projects we’ve embarked on since launching our Sustainable in a Generation Plan in 2017, and how they make a difference where we live, work and source our materials.

Smithfield Foods, Inc. and Roeslein Alternative Energy (RAE) have formed a joint venture called Monarch Bioenergy to produce renewable natural gas (RNG) across Smithfield’s hog farms in Missouri. This partnership converts manure collected from Smithfield farms into RNG, while simultaneously delivering ecological services and developing wildlife habitat. Once complete, all Smithfield company-owned finishing farms in Missouri will have the infrastructure to produce RNG, resulting in approximately 1.3 million dekatherms of RNG annually, which is the equivalent to eliminating 130,000 gasoline vehicles.

On Monday, April 22, more than 1 billion people in more than 190 countries are expected to take part in Earth Day—a day dedicated to environmental awareness, engagement, and action. It is also a day for personal reflection. A day for each of us to take stock of what we can do to help reduce our own environmental footprint in 2019 and beyond. It’s also a time for companies to embrace the role that they can play in creating a healthier planet. HP is one of those companies.

Carbios and L’Oréal previously founded the Consortium to bring enhanced recycling technology designed and developed by CARBIOS to market on an industrial scale. Committed to supporting sustainable development with innovative solutions, Nestlé Waters, PepsiCo and Suntory Beverage & Food Europe are joining the Consortium to help support the circular plastics economy using Carbios’ breakthrough enzyme-based enhanced recycling technology.

Yesterday, a group of leading companies convened by CESPEDES and The World Environment Center with sponsorship of Dow Chemical, ECOLAB and Coca-Cola FEMSA, gathered to share best practices and initiatives to address challenges for sustainable water management, calling to action to accelerate partnerships between private sector, civil society and governments to guarantee water access in safe conditions for everyone.

Ethical clothing manufacturer The Fabric Social has joined Business Call to Action (BCtA) with a commitment to provide fair labour for women in Northeast India. This includes sustaining 2,400 days of contractual work by 2021, developing 300 days of artisanal training by 2022, and creating 200 days of business management and sales development training for conflict affected women by 2023.

Integrated Eco Strategy (IES) and Toxnot announce a new partnership designed to integrate their respective materials transparency platforms. This partnership enables manufactures to quickly and efficiently share building product ingredient data and meet the requirements of certifications such as the Living Building Challenge (LBC) and Declare in new, powerful ways. Both companies are partners with the International Living Future Institute (ILFI), an environmental NGO that administers the LBC, the world’s most rigorous proven performance standard for buildings.

The manufacturing, recycling and research buildings at the São Paulo site for form a literal — if rectangular — loop. It’s a shift away from a traditional linear supply chain, which takes resources from the Earth to make products that are ultimately discarded. Instead, the goal is to adopt a circular model that uses and reuses materials with minimal waste. HP’s operations in Brazil take the idea one step further, creating a closed-loop system that turns waste directly into new products. “It’s all about keeping materials in motion for as long as possible,” says Randi Braunwalder, HP’s manager of social & environmental responsibility in the Americas. “Continuous life cycles instead of limited lifespans.”