ENVIRONMENTAL COMMITMENT
Good for Business, Good for the Environment
We have developed a new cooking process for our fast cooking rice products that
eliminates starchy waste water. This new process not only has reduced starch in
the waste water by 99%, but also has improved the flavour and texture of rice. Good
for us, good for you and good for the environment.
We save millions of gallons of water a month by recycling 75% of the water used
in the rice process. This also keeps millions of gallons out of city water-treatment
plants. Even though we're excited about our progress, we continuously audit all
liquids, solids and gases leaving our plants to further identify opportunities to
reduce, eliminate, reuse or recycle. We recycle the corrugated cartons used in our
plants, and we keep more packaging out of the waste stream by requiring returnable
containers from many of our suppliers.
Source Reduction and Recyclable Packages
One of our biggest success stories is our new method of source reduction. Imagine
saving a million pounds of packaging each year. That's what we save in paper by
reducing box sizes and using thin, high-performance carton board. Smaller packages
mean smaller shipping cases, which saves corrugated board. Smaller cases mean we
get more boxes in the trucks, and that saves fuel. We're loose-filling our rice
boxes, and eliminating pouches where possible.
All of these steps will save over one million pounds of packaging a year. We're
looking for more ways to reduce packaging and eventually make every package smaller,
lighter and more environmentally friendly, while maintaining the high quality of
our products.
Environmental Responsibility at the Office
Our Associate Awareness Program is made up of many small steps
that add up to something big. Around our offices, we have bins for recycling office
paper. To further reduce paper, we use electronic mail. We share magazines and memos,
and make double-sided copies.
Our associate newsletter is printed on recycled paper, as are the Uncle Ben's®
Branded signs in your grocery store. These efforts save thousands of pounds of paper
a month-no small achievement. Our programs aren't perfect-yet. But we are all part
of our environment and share common environmental concerns.
At Uncle Ben's, Inc., we're committed to preserving our planet and protecting our
future. That's why we encourage consumers to become active in their own environment
by starting up community recycling facilities and services.
Please continue to share your suggestions, comments and concerns with us. After
all, we're all in this together.