What is Carbon-Neutrality ?
Within the past year , company after company , have continued to throw around this grandiose idea of becoming carbon-neutral . But what does becoming carbon-neutral actually mean , and why are many companies world-wide working so hard to achieve this status ?
To be carbon-neutral means having a balance between emitting carbon and absorbing carbon from the atmosphere . There are many ways to achieve this status , but the result must always be that zero carbon emissions are released . It is almost impossible for a company to eliminate their carbon footprint entirely . Companies can instead purchase what are called “ carbon credits ” to off-set the number of carbon emissions that a company has left after reducing their emissions with other factors first .
Steps to Achieving Carbon-Neutrality
The journey to carbon-neutrality can be summed up in a 3-step process . Step one is to determine the carbon footprint . This step is the most tedious of all the steps . It includes reaching out to every farm , manufacturer , and distribution center to calculate their carbon footprint . Then , the transportation , the corporate offices , and even the Garden of Life travel must have their carbon emissions calculated . All of these factors combine together to determine the company ’ s carbon footprint . Step two , once we know where we stand regarding our carbon footprint , we can identify opportunities to reduce carbon emissions . Step two involves strategic thinking and a high level of adaptability in our business model . This step can range from switching the kind of light bulbs we use to completely changing the way we package our products . In step three , we must purchase the carbon credits to off-set or “ cancel out ” any carbon emissions that cannot otherwise be fully neutralized by our improvements . Step three is significantly less complex than the previous steps . In order to complete the journey , a third party comes in to evaluate our efforts and certifies the company as being carbon-neutral .
Using SustainaBase ’ s Approach
Our most difficult challenge to overcome is our supply chain , which is inherently complicated . We don ’ t manufacture even one of our own products , and we gather our ingredients from small organic family farms all over the world . To combat this challenge , we needed to find a unique approach to map our complicated supply chain and grow with us as we grow .
We landed on an innovative database-driven approach pioneered by a company called SustainaBase . They are working with us to completely map our carbon footprint inside of a dynamic database that we will maintain and expand in the years to come . It ’ s a cloud-based system and the mapping — which is my job — is essential to getting our certification . Once we map all of our existing reductions , we can figure out other opportunities for change , validate our carbon-offsets for the remainder , and then finish the other steps for certification .
Our Legacy of Sustainability
When I joined Garden of Life , we were already leaders in sustainability . We ’ ve been off-setting all of our energy use with
Wind Credits and have been Certified by GreenE since 2006 . We are the number one brand for Certified Organic and Non-GMO Verified products , and we are not only B-Corp certified but won an award last year as “ Best for the World .” It would seem like the carbon-neutral certification would be a natural — maybe even easy next step .
The current 3rd party certifications have taken us a long way . We have built a line of traceability that traces the organic seeds that our farmers use , all the way to the final product on the shelf . Our traceability has allowed us to be leaps and bounds ahead of where most companies begin their carbon-neutral certification journey . This head start is something we plan to capitalize on and use as a springboard in our efforts . It may even enable us to be certified ahead of schedule .
Other Companies Going Carbon-Neutral
Sustainability and carbon-neutrality are the way of the future . Amazon ’ s Climate Pledge and Walmart ’ s Project Gigaton have launched their carbon-neutral initiatives that encourage companies from all over the world to join the cause . If a company of their size can do it , then any company can achieve carbonneutrality . Amazon and Walmart ’ s involvement shows the true magnitude of what is going on in the carbon-neutrality world . This movement is more significant than any one company . It is a move to create a better world that is healthy , growing , and sustainable . Our plan is to achieve this certification and use our efforts to encourage other companies in their pursuit of their own certification .
Not only does this certification align with helping make our products more sustainable for our customers , but this will also allow us to be better stewards of the earth . Climate change is a serious issue , and carbon-neutrality helps eliminate greenhouse gas emissions that kill our planet . It ’ s important to understand that Garden of Life is helping lead this carbon-neutral movement alongside major brands like Amazon and Walmart . We are going to achieve carbon-neutrality almost 20 years before these other brands . We hope our efforts will also provide us with valuable information that can lead to an even more sustainable business model in the future . We aren ’ t looking to achieve a one-time certification , but instead we want to make a commitment to all of our stakeholders and emphasize environmental sustainability for decades to come .
Why Carbon-Neutrality Matters
Why does any of this matter , and why does it matter so much to us at Garden of Life ? We see business as a powerful tool that is useful in lifting up communities . A healthy community leads to healthy people living in those communities . Ultimately , our mission is to empower extraordinary health , and we believe that becoming carbon-neutral allows us opportunities to do so that we would not have otherwise . With our role in sustainability , we can directly impact business practices all over the world . It ’ s incredible that , even though we are a relatively small company , we can have a role that will genuinely help the world . We can make a difference with our work , and that ’ s what makes Garden of Life such a great company to be a part of .
Extraordinary Health ™ • Vol 40 27