It seems like E, S and G go together like peas and carrots (channeling Forest Gump). But that may not necessarily be the case. There are more instances where companies make decisions as though it is E versus S.
Here’s some news from WhiskeyRiff – not a publication you would expect us to cover:
“Jack Daniel’s would provide the corn slop byproduct that resulted from their whiskey production at little to no cost to farmers in what was called the Cow Feeder Program. The distillery was able to easily get rid of waste (farmers would come pick it up and haul it off), and Tennessee farmers would have a cheap way to feed their livestock.
But that’s all unfortunately coming to an end on March 31 of next year.
That’s because Jack Daniel’s Distillery has decided to enter into a partnership with Three Rivers Energy. In order to meet environmental benchmarks, they’ve developed what’s called an ‘anaerobic digester facility’ that will help turn the ‘slop’ into fertilizer and renewable gas. That means that all the ‘slop’ that used to go to local farmers for free will now have to be fed into the digester facility instead.
And unfortunately, that is devastating news for farmers who rely on the slop to feed their cattle.”
Some say all issues are local; here is a case in point. As Brown-Forman, the corporate owner of the Jack Daniel’s brand, pursues climate goals from a global perspective, the company’s decisions cause negative impacts for the local farmers and economy. Brown-Forman isn’t alone in these conflicts, but must every such decision be a zero sum game? Was it possible for Jack Daniel’s to send 50% of their corn slop to both places, partially solving two problems rather that “wholly” solving one and abandoning the other?
Companies may need to change their mindsets to helping partially solve multiple sustainability problems/facets rather than “one problem, one solution” thinking.
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Photo credit: Joseph Hendrickson – stock.adobe.com
