Last week, I had the opportunity to chat with Sven Gatchev and Pam Birkel, two second-year CSBP students who are part of the SPP team working with Mountain Rose Herbs (MRH), about their project and what they’ve learned so far.
What exactly does MRH do?
MRH sells herbs, teas, and essential oils. About 97% of their products are organic, and they blend and package these ingredients at their facilities into their own proprietary varieties for retail.
What is your project all about? What have you been working on?
We are working on a 2012 Baseline Sustainability Report, focusing on 9 key areas of impact: buildings, landscape, water, energy, waste & recycling, products (sourcing, packaging, shipping), employee benefits, philanthropy, and prosperity. We also had the opportunity to conduct a Greenhouse Gas Inventory and Analysis for MRH’s Scope 1 & 2 impacts, which was great because it allowed us to directly apply some of our classroom knowledge obtained during our LifeCycle Analysis class with Joshua Skov. Moving forward, we’re going to take a deeper look at the findings of the baseline report, and make recommendations for improved performance, and provide MRH with tools for tracking and management of their impacts and initiatives.
What have you learned so far? What have been the biggest surprises and challenges?
One of our major takeaways is that MRH is already doing a really great job, but there is always room for improvement. Something that’s been fun to see in action, and be a part of, is the company’s informal policy to “do something crazy and controversial every year” (with regard to sustainability), and realize that a relatively small group of people (150-200 people) with a similar perspective can create a significant positive impact. One surprise/challenge we’ve faced is actually the company’s financial success. MRH is a firm that shies away from the term “profitability”, instead preferring to use the more appealing term “prosperity”. Part of our job has been to convince them that this success is not only great for them, but a large part of sustainability in general, as they set a good example for other firms, and have increased flexibility to implement creative sustainability solutions.
What do you expect to see as the impacts of your project?
As a result of our baseline report, MRH will finally have a clear and concrete document to centralize and give structure to their sustainability efforts. Having the baseline in place will give them a great jump-off point for future ideas, and has definitely helped them realize their role as leaders. Our contact, Alyssa Lawless, provided a great soundbite when she said “We didn’t realize how awesome we were,” and that was really satisfying for us, to help our client gain a better understanding of their true impacts, both positive and negative.
It sounds like a very satisfying project overall, how do you think you’ve benefitted personally from working with MRH?
It’s been amazing to see firsthand the amount of success a company can have when they truly put people and planet before their own prosperity. Looking at the “big picture” of MRH’s total footprint, and having the ability to impact that, and help shape the way it moves forward, is an extremely valuable experience. We’ve really gained a lot of exposure to the core ideology and vision that motivates the employees of MRH, and we’ve really drawn on that energy, and been treated as full partners in this endeavor, and that’s been a wonderful experience for us.
