Question

i need help with this

You work for a large company looking to improve on sustainability while also improving profitability. The 3 categories you want to consider for this area are: Energy use, carbon footprint, sourcing of raw materials.

Pick any industry you would like. Please research real business applications and how they are currently being deployed and their results.

Answer 1

An industry that I have picked is the food, snacks and beverage industry which has names like PepsiCo, The Coca Cola Company etc.

The real business applications for optimization of energy use, minimization of carbon footprint and optimization of raw materials sourcing in this industry is almost standard in this industry. With regards to optimization of energy use most companies in this industry makes use of energy audits. They develop their business processes in consultation with utility companies which guides them on various means for increasing energy efficiency. Business models are being used by companies like Pepsi to determine environmental and sustainability risks and then comprehensive plans are developed to mitigate this risks. This helps in not only mitigating risks but also in lowering costs which leads to increased competitive advantage in the long run.

With regards to minimization of carbon footprint companies in this industry have developed business applications to measure the following forms of carbon footprint – organizational footprint, product footprint, and portfolio footprint. Companies then make use of applications to minimize its carbon footprint. For example PepsiCo looks at carbon that is embedded in different stages of its products life and then determines the impact of supply chain, materials, manufacture, installation and disposal of the product.

For sourcing of raw materials this industry looks at implementing business applications with a focus on sustainable farming. For example Pepsi has tied up with farmers across the globe to procure potatoes for making its Lays chips. The farmers have to mandatorily use sustainable farming and hence are required not to make undue use of pesticides and insecticides. The company has developed a Sustainable Farming Program and helps farmers right from procurement of seeds to harvesting to ensure that their sourcing of raw materials are sustainable and environmental friendly.