This conference aced expectations on all counts. Three days of meeting the experts, handling the goods, exposure to passionate presenters and what we all attend for, the networking. The remarkable aspect was NatureWorks facilitating the meeting of minds, never pushing its agenda but rather nurturing the event.
There’s a great deal of talk/fried air in the media regarding green issues, which can be rather disorienting if nothing materialises. Let me assure you that at Innovation Takes Root 2010, the results spoke for themselves.
The keynote address delivered by Dave Haft of Frito-Lay Inc was as inspirational as it was benchmarking for environmental sustainability. It’s seldom that we see industry finesse conservation practices on their own accord to the degree that an audience of tech savvy were utterly wowed.
What I recognised as World Class Manufacturing practices suddenly escalated to the pinnacle of engineering achievements. Intensifying sunlight with mirrors to generate steam as a closed loop system in order to power complete production plants was just the teaser. Heat recovery systems, thermographic analysis and validation, optimising fleet transport fuel efficiencies, greaseless fifth wheels, off the grid facilities the list was impressive. Not to mention the LEED Gold certification of the remaining 11 of 14 sites by 2012.
As a division of PepsiCo, these Frito-Lay initiates will be integrated, while further synergies explored between all divisions to meet a “near net zero plant concept” goal. Of course, the trump card was Frito-Lay’s 100% compostable SunChips bag.
The diversity of the delegates’ interests was well accommodated, with as many as three specialty tracks running in parallel sessions, the red thread Ingeo biopolymer. The sessions reported on product applications, polymer modification, product development, advanced fibres, blends and end-of-life scenarios from an Ingeo biopolymer perspective.
Pièce de résistance were two independent commercial initiatives that closed the loop on biopolymers for textile applications. Dirk De Saedeleir, director of product development of the family business Sommer Needlepunch produced the Ingeo carpet that the delegates of the recent Copenhagen Climate Change Conference walked across.
Recylable event carpeting is an entrepreneurial venture without a doubt.
Couple that with Loopla – a new process based on the chemical recycling of PLA back into lactic acid provided by Galactic. Steve De Jonghe, the project manger of this unique cradle-to-cradle approach, provides the end-of life option for event carpets.
This is a brilliant concept! Think about it for a moment. Event carpets are unique to the event due to the advertising or theme that’s woven into the carpet. Could one think of a more sustainable solution to dispose of a dated carpet than to render it back to its basic components in time for the next event?
Circulating among the practitioners and developers of Ingeo branded products was inspirational and served to further instil the realisation that the journey to greater sustainability will be achieved by the diversity of our solutions.
Dean Bellefleur is the founder and creative director of D-idea.
© FoodBev Media Ltd 2024