Sustainability
Donate Surplus
After we have taken all of our orders, baked our deliciousness, delivered our goods, and donated to some outstanding organizations, there is always some leftover. We make a point of reaching out to the community to get this surplus product into good, caring hands like Birch Community Services, food pantries, and homeless shelters. You can read more about it on our Where We Shine page.
Recycle
We’re doing a pretty good job of keeping waste out of the landfill. Last year we had a ratio of nearly 80/20. That means we recycled or composted 80% of our waste and sent 20% to the landfill. Not bad, but we think we can do better. Afterall 80% is only a “B”, and we really want an “A”! Our goal is to reach 90% this year. We’re also working with a sustainability adviser to take a look at all of our practices…everything from waste to water, packaging to air quality. We want small footprints and big hearts!
Compost
Compost is comprised of things that can’t be used like egg shells and fruit peels, product that is no longer fresh for human consumption, and product that can’t be converted into animal feed. The number one goal, of course, is not to waste precious food. If it passes its window for human or animal consumption, however, it gets repurposed, rather than added to the landfill. So we sort! It is then converted to beneficial uses such as mulch, yard compost, and even energy.
Feed Commodity
Food that is no longer fit for human consumption is sorted and sent to Feed Commodity, LLC to be re-purposed into livestock feed. Not only does this keep food from being wasted in the landfills, it also saves resources on the front end by reducing the amount of livestock feed that would have been produced from raw materials. That’s a win-win!
Local Suppliers
Doing business locally makes good sense. We do our best to choose local first. Supporting local businesses creates more jobs in our communities and keeps tax dollars invested in local projects. It’s good for the environment since transportation costs are drastically reduced. Lastly, linking arms with our neighbors fosters a feeling of community and unity which is beneficial to us all!
Packaging
Of course most everyone understands the importance of recycling these days, but on the flip side is being purposeful about how our packaging is made. Using packaging that is made of recycled materials is one more way to help the environment. Our most common packaging is liners and cardboard. Our liners are made of 42% total recycled content and our cardboard is 74% total recycled content. We are committed to doing our best to be good stewards of the earth!