2Sustain

The Coca-Cola Company’s PlantBottle received a gold award at the 22nd annual global DuPont Awards for Packaging Innovation held this week.

Honored for its demonstrated breakthrough packaging innovation, the PlantBottle topped a field of more than 160 global entrants in the overall program. The prestigious DuPont Award is the packaging industry’s longest running, independently judged global award program. Leading international industry and sustainability experts judged entrants on their excellence in innovation, sustainability and cost/waste reduction.

Coca-Cola’s PlantBottle wins on all accounts. It is made from up to 30 percent renewable plant-based material. Plus, it is 100 percent recyclable, like traditional PET (polyethylene terephthalate) plastic. (In other words, PlantBottle packaging can be recycled in the existing commercial recycling infrastructure.) (more…)

Despite challenging economic conditions and regulatory uncertainty, a majority of corporate executives expect to increase spending on climate change initiatives between 2010 and 2012, according to new survey results from Ernst & Young.

The survey, conducted in the spring of 2010, polled 300 global corporate executives from 16 countries with at least US$1b in annual revenue. Among these respondents, 70 percent plan to increase spending on climate change initiatives over the next two years. Nearly half plan to spend between 0.5 percent to more than 5 percent of their revenue on climate change initiatives. (As a frame of reference, for a US$1b company, this represents an anticipated spend of US$5 million to US$50 million annually.)

Here are a few other key finding from Ernst & Young’s new research: (more…)

The bamboo cushions that Dell uses to package some of its Netbooks and laptops recently received American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) D-6400 certification. This certification confirms the packaging, made from mechanically pulped bamboo from a Forest Stewardship Council-certified bamboo forest in China, will compost and biodegrade at a rate comparable to known compostable materials when added to a hot, active compost pile.

In addition, the certification assures that the compost resulting from the packaging’s degradation process is of good quality and can sustain plant growth.

Dell first introduced the bamboo packaging in November 2009. The company says it chose bamboo for this green packaging initiative because: (more…)

In a move that strengthens the company’s commitment to corporate responsibility, Metro Inc. announced last week that it has adopted a sustainable fisheries policy for seafood products sold in its stores.

Starting in September 2010, Metro will stop selling a number of threatened species and will change its product labeling. By refusing to sell threatened species, the company says it hopes to help the recovery of fish stocks and the conservation of ocean diversity.

With annual sales of over $11 billion, Metro is a leader in the food and pharmaceutical sectors in Québec and Ontario, where it operates a network of more than 600 food stores and more than 250 drugstores. Walmart Canada announced a similar sustainable seafood policy last month.

Metro’s new sustainable fisheries policy involves  four key supply criteria: (more…)

Ford Motor Company wants to reduce the carbon footprint of its supply chain, and so the company announced last week that it will survey 35 global suppliers on their energy use and GHG emissions.

The 35 suppliers include companies that make commodities such as seats, steering systems, tires and metal components, and they represent nearly 30 percent of Ford’s $65 billion in annual procurement spending. The company says it wants to use the data collected to create a broad-based carbon management approach for its supply chain. (more…)