How To Reduce Your Impact

There is a lot of confusion around what are viable ways for a business to reduce it’s impact on the environment. There has been a lot of greenwashing in mainstream media and we are now seeing some businesses that have taken action to improve their sustainability but have ultimately negatively affected their impact. The common reaction can be to make a change so that you are seen to be doing something.

However, if you do react in this way you could be putting your businesses reputation at risk and increasing your impact on the environment. Due to a lack of regulations and information, there is a lot of confusion around how certain items can be disposed of and in some cases, councils are rejecting waste if it doesn’t meet a certain grade. 

In the case of Commonsense Organics, a food producer and environmentally conscious brand, they acted early to try and improve their sustainability. Focusing on their customer facing product they decided to go for a compostable alternative to their packaging. This was a decision the business thought was in the right direction even though it doubled their packaging costs. The Wellington council moved then banned all compostable packaging unless it met the BioGro certification. As a result, their packaging would be diverted to landfill, having the opposite effect of what they intended.

Being able to take a holistic view of your business’s operations and find tangible ways to reduce your environmental impact is hugely beneficial. Often these areas are overlooked and disregarded as not impactful. With Specialists you will be able to review these areas and gain achievable changes.

At Snell we have inhouse specialists over a range of categories. They are able to provide expert knowledge and insights into how your business can make viable environmental strides. To organize a review of your businesses operations please contact your Snell representative.