“Looking at the future and sustainability of our Company, we work to integrate the circular economy within our business model, seeking efficiency in the use of resources, from primary production to recycling, valorization and reuse of waste.”
At Cerealto Siro Foods, we have a circular economy model that allows us to improve the efficiency and use of resources, minimizing waste and reintroducing them into the production cycle. This model allows us to minimize our environmental footprint and generate an economic return for the business, while contributing to the reduction of food waste.
The circular economy is one of the seven flagship initiatives of the European 2020 Strategy with the aim of generating smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. In Spain, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has drawn up the Spanish Circular Economy 2030 Strategy.
We collaborate with Tuero, our ally at Etnvironment, with whom we revalue our food by-products and convert them into animal food, we recycle the oils and packaging, and we compost the sludge from our treatment plants.
The biogas plant at Venta de Baños de Tuero was started up in June 2019, with a management capacity of 30,000 tons per year of agro-food waste. In addition, the new biogas plant in Portugal began operating at the beginning of 2020. This plant is operating at full capacity 24 hours a day, seven days a week, enabling Tuero to strengthen its position in the Iberian market, as well as to maintain its commitment to its suppliers and customers and to provide continuity of service.
Our effort to develop a circular economy model, as by increasing efficiency in the use of our resources, has resulted in the following milestones:
- We achieved zero landfill targets in all our factories in Spain and Portugal, in 2019, which means that all the waste generated by our productive activity was revalued and recycled. We are working to achieve this goal in 100% of our centers.
- We renew the ISO 14001 Certification in all the Company’s factories in Spain in 2019.
- In Spain, 100% of the energy we consume comes from renewable sources.
- We measure and control our environmental footprint. We calculate the carbon and water footprint in our plants, to manage and reduce the polluting emissions that we generate with our activity. Our emissions in 2019 amounted to 50,521 tonnes of CO2 equivalent, which represents a significant decrease compared to the previous year.
- Training and environmental awareness. We provide our employees training on good environmental practices, as well as awareness of reducing energy and water consumption.
- We participated in the Forética Climate Change Cluster, made up of more than 50 companies that work to lead the strategic positioning of climate change on the business agenda, to dialogue and exchange opinions and good practices, to be part of the global debate and to be key agents in the decisions taken at an administrative level.
It should be noted that Cerealto Siro Foods currently chairs the Committee against Food Waste and the Sustainability Committee of the Spanish Association of Manufacturers and Distributors (AECOC).
