Nestlé Purina’s Oklahoma City manufacturing facility has achieved zero waste to landfill status, Purina’s seventh location to achieve this target. Nestlé has pledged to be landfill-free at all of its global locations by 2020.
The company says its waste-reduction efforts focus on three areas: employee engagement, improving processes to minimize waste generation, and partnerships with vendors for composting, recycling, energy recovery and other forms of beneficial use.
All of Purina’s factories also have externally verified environmental management systems through ISO 14001 certification.
Under Nestlé global standards, to achieve zero waste to landfill status a facility’s discarded materials are directed to destinations that specialize in recovering the ecological and/or economic value of the material. In Oklahoma City, vendor partners include waste-to-energy company Covanta, waste and recycling company Republic Services and Minick Materials, an Oklahoma-based commercial composter.
To date, 35 percent of Nestlé Purina factories have achieved zero waste to landfill. Purina’s seven landfill-free factories add to the growing number of Nestlé factories in the US to achieve zero waste to landfill status.
In addition to diverting waste from landfills, and thus reducing carbon emissions, companies’ zero waste efforts can also save money. Reducing food waste alone can reduce operating expenses, according to a study released yesterday that found businesses save $14 in operating cost, according to a study released yesterday.
Many leading companies, however, including Procter & Gamble, General Motors and Microsoft, are moving beyond simply reducing food waste and targeting zero waste at their operations worldwide.
General Motors, which beat its landfill-free target four years early, says zero waste efforts contribute to its top and bottom lines by driving efficiencies, generating revenue and saving money. In an earlier interview John Bradburn, GM global manager of waste reduction, told Environmental Leader that the company has generated up to $1 billion from recycling in recent years.