Silk: An Environmentally Responsible Company

Going green is certainly the "popular thing to do" for many companies. Numerous manufacturing plants have altered their variations of machinery, many food companies have changed their processing methods, and restaurants have re-done their light bulbs and dishwashers. However, while this trend of environmental friendliness is nothing to scoff at, it often does cause those companies who have been trailblazers in the green movement to go largely ignored. This truly should not be the case. Companies who have historically sought to produce their products in environmentally friendly methods should be recognized; one such company is Silk.

Silk produces one of the more popular brands of soy (and almond) milk in America today, and their desire to make their milk through environmentally sustainable methods is admirable. One of these ways is through harnessing wind energy to produce their soy milk-a method they've been using since 2003. Additionally, for every kilowatt of energy used by the Silk industry, a Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) from Bonneville Environmental Association (one of the many "partners in green" of Silk) is purchased. Through the purchase of such certificates, Silk has given back to the earth an environmental equivalent of planting 35,000 acres of trees. Silk's contribution to the earth through actions like this has been well documented and applauded by the US EPA.

Besides using wind energy and purchasing RECs, Silk has taken other steps towards creating a better earth. Silk is striving to eventually make all of their soymilk from soy beans grown through Silk's Responsible Soybean Sourcing Program, a program which Silk co-developed with Conservation International. As a preliminary step towards fully implementing this program, Silk has conducted a "Responsible Purchasing Survey" among all of their soybean producers to better understand the methods behind how soybeans are currently being grown. After this is fully understood, a program focused primarily on producing soybeans in a "sustainable, socially responsible, and ethical manner" can be implemented.

Finally, Silk has partnered with a several other significant organizations in the green movement. Specifically, Silk supports many media-related environmental awareness organizations such as the Environmental Media Association, which focuses on educating consumers about their environment. Another media-related partner of Silk is Reverb; Reverb is a non profit organization that works to encourage music tours to become more eco-friendly, and has been very successful in doing so. Since 2004 Reverb has worked with over 70 major music tours to reduce their combined CO₂ emission by 62,000 tons.

Silk's commitment to producing green products is evident through everything from their use of wind energy, to their partnerships with environmental awareness organizations, to the green caps on their soy milk. As you shop in your grocery store, consider the principles behind the production of the food you purchase; hopefully many of those products will be made by companies with green practices like Silk.