Sustainability has become a universal issue for businesses in all sectors and something companies of all sizes should look forward to.
Suppose your dream has always been to own a bakery one day, and you’re on the road to seeing it come true; you should consider adopting sustainability practices because they’ll support its long-term growth and success. It would be best to look for ways to build a business that focuses on the welfare of future generations and the planet.
Sustainable development implies integrating cost-effective and eco-friendly solutions so you can achieve sustainability. Your main purpose is to run a business that reduces pollution, waste, the ecological footprint, and carbon emissions. The case for sustainability when planning to start a bakery is irrefutable because it powers processes that cut down operation costs, boost brand reputation, and improve business efficiency. Eco-friendly businesses attract and retain clients and employees because they prove they put the community’s interests first.
Here are some recommendations on how to integrate sustainable practices into your bakery.
Source supplies in a sustainable way
Purchasing equipment is one of the first steps to prepare to open a bakery. Unfortunately, during this step, you are likely to forget to check the equipment’s eco-friendliness because you’re focused on finding pieces that fit your space and budget. However, a great way to save money in the long run is to invest in energy-efficient equipment that allows you to lower energy bills and water consumption.
Once you equip the bakery and ensure you purchased all the tools necessary for preparing products, it’s time to search for ingredient suppliers. It’s essential to check if they also embrace sustainable practices and conduct their operations considering the community’s interests. For example, if some of your products contain nuts, search for an eco-friendly nut supplier.
Use organic ingredients
People nowadays want to eat healthily, so if you want your bakery to stand out, think about supplying ingredients from organic sources. Look for a nuts producer, milk provider, free-range eggs supplier, and other partners that could provide you with high-quality products. It would also be great if you could source a high amount of ingredients locally to support the local economy and lower your carbon footprint. When you purchase ingredients from close-distance producers, you limit your business’s impact on the environment. If possible, you could also make some ingredients on the premises, to cut down costs. Making your own chocolate chips, sauces, buttercream, and decorations is more sustainable.
Opt for eco-friendly packaging
When you put cookies in boxes, cupcakes in paper, and bread in bags, you know that your customers immediately throw away the packaging after eating the products. In case you have a designated area where your customers serve the products at your venue, they will also use napkins, cups, and other tools, which might also go straight to the trash. Considering that you run a bakery, it’s challenging to eliminate packaging, but you can control the type of packaging you use so you can reduce waste.
Instead of using plastic packaging, you can opt for recyclable cardboard, which decomposes faster in landfills. Additionally, you can recycle the packaging accordingly to limit the amount of waste your business produces and have a minimal environmental footprint.
You could also encourage the clients to bring their reusable cups; suppose you also serve drinks so you can cut the number of takeaway cups you offer.
Reduce food waste
You want to produce enough baked goods to serve all your clients, but you should also be ready for the times when some of the products are left on the shelves, and you cannot sell them the following day. You can analyze your customers’ patterns to try and predict how many products you sell daily. You will also be able to tell which products are more popular and lower the amount of the other products you bake. Also, instead of tossing the baked goods into the trash at the end of the day, you could donate them to those in need.
Additionally, you should also ensure that you don’t throw away unused ingredients. Look for alternative recipes that allow you to use some of them, and use machine learning and other online tools to get an accurate picture of what ingredients you need.
Lower the amount of water you use
It shouldn’t surprise you that a bakery is among the largest water consumers. All businesses in the food industry require a large amount of water to function. However, if you want to run a sustainable endeavor, minimizing water usage is crucial. Install water-saving toilets and sinks into the restrooms and low-flow spray valves for the areas designed to clean utensils.
It’s also advisable to purchase equipment that uses low quantities of water. In addition, too much water left in tools and pieces of equipment could facilitate pathogen growth and spread, which could cause health issues.
Cut down transportation mileage
Transportation is essential for all kinds of businesses because they rely on it to transport products, receive supplies, and ensure their employees get to work on time. However, the mileage for all these trips adds to your business’s carbon emissions, and you need to make some adjustments to reduce it. Start by supplying ingredients from local companies and choose the closest producers when you cannot find alternatives in your area. You could also order multiple ingredients from the same partner to reduce shipment trips. You can also cover transportation costs for your employees if they use public transport to encourage them to leave their cars at home.
Final words
Running an energy-efficient business means reducing the amount of energy you use and finding ways to be more efficient. It starts with purchasing eco-friendly equipment and goes to the type of packaging you choose for your products. As technology advances, you’ll find it easier to adhere to sustainable practices because you can access multiple tools and pieces of equipment that help you curb your carbon footprint and lower energy costs.
