Patagonia’s sustainable snacks, better conditions in Bangladesh and US consumers given green energy options
Patagonia gets into food
Outerwear eco-leader Patagonia is adding a somewhat unexpected notch to its sustainable belt: salmon jerky.
While the company’s venture into food might seem surprising, it falls right in line with Patagonia’s healthy and sustainable living ethos.
“The salmon industry today is a broken model,” Patagonia says. “Too many endangered stocks are dwindling under the pressures of indiscriminate harvest and unsustainable fish-farming techniques. Something has to change. We believe a market-based solution is the best way to effect that change.”
To launch Patagonia Provisions Wild Salmon Jerky, the company worked with a seasoned smokehouse guru and developed its own sourcing system, partnering with Skeena Wild, a Canadian fish conservation organisation, to ensure the fish was the best quality and sourced using the highest sustainability standards. In fact, the company says it’s the first business in the fish industry to actively partner with a conservation organisation.
The jerky business, in particular, was the right fit because Patagonia can use its existing distribution channels, and doesn’t need to spend additional funds on express shipping to keep the product fresh. Current flavours include smoked pepper, smoked chilli pepper, and smoked teriyaki, which are available online and will soon be available in all of Patagonia’s stores.
The company had planned to bring its salmon jerky to market last year, but got a slew of complaints for using MSG in the marinade, and subsequently spent additional time tweaking the recipe.
PVH signs safety agreement
PVH, owner of popular brands such as Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein, has bowed to pressure from labour groups and committed to an agreement to improve fire and building safety protocols in its Bangladesh supplier factories. The agreement comes more than a year after 29 workers died at one of PVH’s suppliers in the country.
The two-year joint memorandum of understanding unites PVH with the Clean Clothes Campaign, Worker Rights Consortium, the International Labour Rights Forum, and Maquila Solidarity Network, outlining PVH’s commitment of up to $1m to establish a multistakeholder task force that’s responsible for developing an in-factory training programme, reviewing building regulations and enforcement, creating factory health and safety committees, developing a worker complaint process to report health and safety risks, and advising an independent chief inspector.
According to PVH the agreement “recognises the need for the Bangladeshi government, the Bangladeshi ready-made garment industry, brand owners and retailers, and labour to work together to create a safe and sustainable work environment within the Bangladeshi industry”.
The major caveat, however, is that three other brands or retailers must join the agreement for it to take effect. Gap, JC Penney, Zara and H&M have already been approached about joining – but have yet to sign.
Tessel Pauli, urgent appeals co-ordinator for the Clean Clothes Campaign, says companies are often reluctant to join programmes that require funding and involve local trade unions, as they are subsequently held accountable to the unions for their sourcing and labour practices. But such reasoning doesn’t cut it for labour advocacy groups.
“There is no excuse for other brands to refuse joining a credible initiative, given the urgency of the situation in Bangladesh,” Pauli says. “There have been several multistakeholder meetings on safety in Bangladesh in the past two years where companies have admitted that safety is a serious and urgent problem in Bangladesh, yet they have not taken the invitation from labour groups to work towards a solution.”
Should other brands fail to participate, PVH will still donate $1m but to an alternative programme, which would be more limited in scope as it would not include suppliers outside of PVH’s operations.
P&G shares another supply chain tool
In the spirit of collaboration, Procter & Gamble has opted to share the analysis tool component of its supply chain environmental sustainability scorecard.
The analysis tool enables companies to track and calculate key sustainability metrics in their supply chains. P&G’s scorecard, most of which was made public two years ago, defines nine areas that should be analysed, spanning energy use, water, waste disposal and GHG emissions.
The scorecard has been tweaked and improved upon. For example, it now enables supplier companies to see their rating immediately after completion. “This is transparent and avoids the belief that ratings are determined by a P&G panel behind closed doors,” says P&G spokesman Jeff LeRoy.
A notably successful element of the scorecard is the “innovation idea box”, which encourages suppliers to share their thoughts on how P&G can upgrade its operations. One supplier recently pointed out that P&G had restrictions on how suppliers could ship certain materials, and suggested an alternative that would modify the shipping method and reduce fuel use. About 40% of suppliers in 2010 and 25% in 2011 submitted ideas, many of which materialised into projects.
P&G hopes the scorecard will help establish an industry standard, thereby streamlining the process for suppliers.
“We are hoping others will take notice and recognise that there are areas in environmental sustainability where we don’t compete against each other. We just don’t. We can work together, collaborate, and innovate,” says LeRoy.
Andrex launches eco toilet tissue
Andrex has come out with a new Eco line of toilet paper, which the company touts as the first in its category to satisfy consumer expectations for quality, softness and value.
Several unique product features stand out, like the line’s use of 90% recycled fibre and 10% natural bamboo, which is then wrapped in 100% recycled and recyclable packaging – two category firsts, according to Tom Berry, head of sustainability, EMEA for Kimberly-Clark (owner of Andrex).
Berry says bamboo was chosen because of its speedy growth rate, meaning it produces more fibre than trees traditionally used for toilet tissue. It also means less land and water are required. The bamboo is FSC certified, and while it’s currently sourced from China, Andrex plans to explore other, more local sources down the line.
Andrex judiciously developed the Eco line with the hopes of meeting consumer demand for a high quality and price-friendly recycled product, and to capitalise on what the company believes is a huge (and lucrative) opportunity to expand the green sub-category in toilet tissue, which currently represents a modest 3.5% of the market.
New clean energy start-up
A new start-up called Ethical Electric (EE) is looking to change how Americans consume energy by offering an easy way to power their homes using 100% clean electricity.
In many states, consumers are able to choose their energy supplier. While the major utilities will still provide their distribution and transmission services, EE will take over the generation component, serving as an electricity retailer by purchasing wind and solar, as well as renewable energy credits in the wholesale market. Customers will then pay the retail value of those clean energy sources and, in turn, get 100% renewable electricity.
“While we can’t replace the wires of large American utilities, we can replace where people source their energy,” says Ethical Electric founder Tom Matzzie.
The service doesn’t require lengthy sign-ups or new bills. Rather, customers simply register online with their basic details and utility account number, and Ethical Electric will show up on their routine electricity bill in place of where the big utility used to charge for generating electricity.
Matzzie plans to further differentiate his company by offering customers a guarantee of origin, so they know their money is supporting the construction of new wind farms and solar projects. Matzzie’s ultimate goal is to source clean electricity within just a few hours of customers’ homes, so the business becomes as local as possible.
The cost of EE’s service is dependent on state regulations, so in some areas the rate will be less than a traditional energy utility, while in others it will cost slightly more. The company plans to open for business in the third quarter of 2012.
Google in Taiwan
For the first time, Google will use a thermal energy storage system in its new data centre in Taiwan, making it one of the most energy efficient data centres in Asia.
Thermal energy storage systems work by chilling or freezing a coolant overnight when energy costs are down, and using the cool air that’s been stored during the daytime when usage – and costs – are at a premium.
The state-of-the-art data centre will cost Google a cool $300m and should be completed in 2013.
“More new internet users are coming online every day here in Asia than anywhere else in the world,” says Google. “They are looking for information and entertainment, new business opportunities and better ways to connect with friends and family near and far. We’re building this data centre to make sure that our users in Taiwan and across Asia can do just that, with the fastest and most reliable access possible to all of Google’s services.”