Carbon Footprint
We continually seek ways to minimize our impact on the environment and reduce our carbon footprint. From the sourcing of raw materials and design, manufacture, and distribution of our products to our energy use and recycling efforts, we are dedicated to finding new opportunities to become the most environmentally responsible company we can be.
Reducing our Carbon Footprint Globally
2021 marks a global effort to determine the total carbon footprint of our operations as well as upstream and downstream in our supply chain. We are looking closely at our direct use such as the fuel and energy we consume in our facilities along with our indirect use that includes emissions resulting from the materials we use, transportation and shipping, and business travel. In one example, when transporting products and materials between our global facilities, when possible we use ocean freight versus air transportation, as the latter can emit more than 30 to 40 times more carbon into the atmosphere.
By accounting for all our emissions, we will identify opportunities to reduce emissions and can create targets for improvement to reduce greenhouse gases across across our business operations.
Plant-a-Tree, 3,500 So Far
Since 2016, Bio-Rad has worked with World Land Trust, an international conservation charity that protects the world’s most biologically significant and threatened habitats, to encourage
Bio-Rad customers in Europe to transition to digital ordering. This reduces the use of paper during the ordering process as well as invoicing.
For each customer who switches to digital communications, Bio-Rad plants a tree in the customer’s honor. The trees help conserve the Atlantic Forest in Brazil. So far, our customers have helped us plant over 3,500 trees, helping to reforest over four acres of this important habitat.
Renewable Energy
Looking for ways to reduce the carbon footprint of our headquarters in Hercules, California, in 2021, we installed a solar array system. The group of solar panels are linked together to provide power and are expected to supply nearly half of the energy needs at our campus with green energy. The project consists of ground-mounted, carport and roof top solar panels across the corporate campus.
Other energy efficiency projects are underway across our global real estate portfolio including replacement chiller units for air conditioning and manufacturing, upgrading air handling and air conditioning equipment, improving insulation, and retrofitting our lighting systems with more efficient alternatives.
Eco-friendly packaging
Reducing packaging waste is important not only to us, but to our customers as well. Bio-Rad has many sustainable packaging initiatives underway including:
- Replacing white bleached corrugated shipping boxes made primarily of virgin fiber with eco-friendly boxes when possible. The new boxes consist of 86 percent recycled fibers and varying sizes of the boxes are being replaced each year.
- Using recyclable kraft paper to fill the void space in the boxes when possible, replacing the difficult-to-dispose polystyrene packing “peanuts.” While the polystyrene peanut is light and provides cushion, it is and nearly impossible to recycle and does not decompose. And by replacing polystyrene protective inserts with recycled molded paper pulp, we are helping to reduce the amount of polystyrene that ends up in landfills.