11.11.2009

Saalemühle and environmental protection

Our corporate philosophy is based on sustainability in all areas of our business. As part of this, we view all our working processes in their entirety, from lasting relationships with our suppliers and sustained economic growth through to ongoing development of our employees.

We are certainly asked repeatedly about our commitment to ecological sustainability in particular. For us, it's a clear given. Which is why we'd like to give you a brief summary of the most important measures we are implementing to ensure environmental sustainability and energy efficiency.

Sustainability in the cultivation of raw materials.

• Any use of crop protection measures or fertilisers by our farmers must be discussed with, and inspected by, our organisation.
• Soil cultivation activities are aligned to the prevailing conditions through the use of highly professional farming machinery.
• Special methods of soil cultivation prevent possible erosion, at the same time ensuring the soil does not dry out. This maintains fertility and preserves water as a resource.

Energy efficiency in production.

• Our production plants, with short transport routes, are optimised to minimise energy use as far as possible.
• Heat recovery facilities throughout the operation ensure thermal energy efficiency of around 70%.
• Our production locations, along with two further locations in the immediate vicinity, operate hydroelectric installations which provide around 55 % of the electricity used.
• Movement sensors are installed in rooms where staff is not constantly present so that lights are not left on unnecessarily.

Environmental protection in logistics.

• Acquiring 100 % of our raw materials from the immediate area (radius of approximately 50 km) minimises transport routes from the grower to our company.
• With the tare weight reduced as far as possible, our vehicles are designed to achieve maximum payload while complying with general legal conditions. This saves hundreds of additional journeys every year.
• We operate an in-house biological clarification plant which collects and cleans the dirty water that comes from the compulsory requirement to clean our vehicles as well as all waste water that occurs within the organisation.