The list of things that bring us joy at Ben & Jerry’s is thankfully a long one. Our relationship with partners like St. Albans Co-op comes to mind. But believe it or not, we’re actually also very excited about the waste we generate — or more specifically, we’re excited about what we can generate from our waste! We’re constantly looking for new ways to manage our waste stream and improve our ice cream production. You see, we create 2 types of waste: one we send down the drain to a municipal treatment facility, but the other is too ice-creamy to be handled by that waste-water plant. So, over the years we’ve gotten pretty creative with it. In the beginning, it went to a manure pit, then it went to a composting facility, and now we’re sending it to a Methane Bio-digester. This miracle of modern science puts our waste through a biological process that actually creates methane energy for the farmer. And the “cake” solids left over from the digester are then turned into comfy bedding for the cows. Who knew waste could be so exciting? We’re passionate about making our waste less wasteful.

 

The Three R's - Reduce, Re-use & Recycle are taken very seriously at Ben & Jerry's.

Reduce
In 2002, we put ourselves on an eco-diet; continuously improving plant efficiencies, acting on new technology options and taking advantage of emission offsets.

Re-use
The sad truth is that when we make our ice cream, some of it gets wasted so, in 1987, we began supplying a pig farm in Stowe, Vermont. The pigs go hog-wild over all the flavours except Mint Cookie (actually, they love the cookies, just can’t stand the mint.)

Recycle
Every year we learn how to recycle more of our solid waste. Back in 1998, we recycled 53% which actually saved us $66,000! In our offices, green guidelines mean that we recycle, use energy efficient light bulbs and where possible, use 100% renewable energy.