Unilever is a massive corporation that owns a ton of brands from Q-Tips to Ben Jerry’s Ice Cream. They have recently pushed for more efficiency and sustainability across all their brands and have found that their environment-saving approach has saved money.
The company’s sustainability director for manufacturing, John Maguire, echoed the sentiment that sustainability can be a force for cost-saving, as opposed to an added new cost. He said in a statement: “Eco-efficiency isn’t just about reducing the environmental footprint it also makes good business sense … Since 2008 our eco-efficiency programmes have avoided more than €300m of costs–almost €100m in energy; €186m in materials; €17m in water; and €10m in waste disposal. The benefits are very clear in a world where energy prices are increasing.”