February 13, 2015 Comments are off Kellen
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Mill Boosts Efficiency

Palatka Mill’s $70 Million Investment Boosts Energy Efficiency

Georgia-Pacific’s commitment to sustainability can be seen as an investment in the future, which is why we’re spending $70 million in our Palatka, Florida, paper mill. The money will be used to upgrade the mill’s evaporators, a key component in generating energy to operate the mill. At first glance, new evaporators might not sound impressive, but they’ll reduce energy costs by an estimated $1 million per month and water usage by more than 30 percent.

This is just the latest in almost $100 million spent to enhance the mill’s safety, quality, sustainability and productivity.

Palatka mill manager Kevin Curry stresses the strategic importance of the expense. “We continue to make ongoing investments in the mill to help reduce our overall environmental impact and improve our cost competitiveness. This latest investment helps accomplish both of those goals, and earning it is a great accomplishment for our entire Palatka team,” he said.

This new project is in addition to an approximately $19 million investment announced last year for the installation of product quality improvement equipment in the mill’s kraft paper area. Installation of that project is currently underway. The mill also has approximately $10 million slated for safety and environmental improvement projects.

 

January 13, 2015 Comments are off Fathom
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Sustainability Stories Web Series

Smithfield Foods Continues “Sustainability Stories” Web Series With a Look at Environmental Performance

SMITHFIELD, Va., Jan. 13, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Kinesha Allen, the environmental manager at the Smithfield Farmland facility in Smithfield, Virginia, is part of a team that helps keep the plant’s environmental performance on track. Allen and her teammates are committed to fulfilling one of Smithfield Foods’ key sustainability commitments, reducing the company’s environmental footprint, and she is featured in the latest installment of multi-media “sustainability stories” on Smithfieldcommitments.com.

“The environmental performance of all our plants—in the U.S. and internationally—receives a lot of attention, and we work hard to improve every year,” said Larry Pope, Smithfield’s president and chief executive officer. “Kinesha is part of that effort as are virtually all the employees who work for Smithfield Foods and our independent operating companies.”

Allen has a passion for the environment, and her responsibilities run the gamut from checking water and energy usage to volunteering at local schools. She’s proud of her team’s performance. “We’ve won several environmental awards at this facility. The most recent one would be the 2014 Business Partner of the Year through the Virginia Recycling Association,” Allen said.

For more than a decade, Smithfield Foods has been committed to conducting business in a manner that reduces its environmental impact. Over the years Smithfield has augmented and improved its environmental management systems, enabling the company to reduce its use of key resources, including water, energy and land.

Smithfield also sets challenging targets to further elevate its performance around water, energy, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and solid waste. Not only has this made good economic and environmental sense, but the company’s focus on improvement has resulted in reaching some of those targets ahead of schedule.

Smithfield believes that sustainability is a journey, not a destination, and corporations must continually strive to exceed what is expected of them. This belief is ingrained in the culture and operations at Smithfield Foods. The online sustainability stories help share Smithfield’s journey and introduce the people who create this culture.

All three installments of the “Sustainability Stories” series can be found athttp://www.smithfieldcommitments.com/stories

About Smithfield Foods

Smithfield Foods is a $14 billion global food company and the world’s largest pork processor and hog producer. In the United States the company is also the leader in numerous packaged meats categories with popular brands including Smithfield®, Eckrich®, Farmland®, Armour®, Cook’s®, Gwaltney®, John Morrell®, Kretschmar®, Curly’s®, Carando®, Margherita® and Healthy Ones®. Smithfield Foods is committed to providing good food in a responsible way and maintains robust animal care, community involvement, employee safety, environmental, and food safety and quality programs. For more information, visit www.smithfieldfoods.com and www.smithfieldcommitments.com.

Contact:
Kathleen Kirkham
Smithfield Foods, Inc.
1(757)365-1965

December 15, 2014 Comments are off Fathom
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One More Step Toward Sustainability

Philips LEDs on Costa Cruises’ Fleet: One More Step Toward Sustainability

December 15, 2014 /3BL Media/ – Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA), the global leader in lighting, is supporting Costa Cruises in its path of sustainable business by upgrading its fleet with the latest LED lighting. More than 300,000 light fittings are being replaced across 10 ships with the MASTER LED and CorePro LEDTube solutions. The lighting project guarantees energy savings of up to 80 percent and a resulting huge reduction in fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. The switch to energy-efficient LED technology is the latest step toward the company’s goal of slashing emissions in line with the established target.

“We are proud to have incorporated Philips’ experience and solutions into such a technologically advanced project,” said Roberto Brambilla, professional commercial director, Philips Lighting IIG. “Philips has always been committed to improving people’s lives through considerable and valuable innovations. This project furthers the LED revolution with technology that requires less energy and has a far smaller environmental impact than traditional lighting solutions.”

As well as securing this major energy achievement, the LEDs emit excellent quality white light, resembling natural sunlight, that does not irritate or tire the eyes, while providing instant, maximum-intensity light with fittings that stay at room temperature. The installed lighting solutions provide a brighter environment and create a more welcoming and relaxing atmosphere than the previous halogen bulbs.

Stefania Lallai, Costa Cruises sustainability and PR director, stated, “This initiative between two companies engaged in issues regarding the preservation and protection of the environment represents another step forward by Costa Cruises in the field of sustainability and is part of the projects undertaken to attenuate the impact generated and to reduce energy consumption on board.”

Philips is working closely with the Travel Foundation and climate groups to implement green technologies across the travel industry.

– See more at: http://3blmedia.com/News/Philips-LEDs-Costa-Cruises-Fleet-One-More-Step-Toward-Sustainability#sthash.jIFFSwJK.dpuf