TECH TALK
Are you aware of what you don’t know when it comes to energy and your operations? By Stacey Newman
A
ll human beings have a stake in achieving sustainable operations and at the heart of eco-responsibility is the question of energy—how do we produce, capture, use and waste energy?
reaping the rewards of the program, which among other benefits provides access to volume price breaks—allowing ECNG to secure wholesale market pricing on behalf of the entire group and pass on the savings directly to individual members.
The industry experts I spoke to agree: it’s the incorrect assumptions made about our operations that stand in the way of running sustainable businesses and saving costs in the short and long term. They also say that there is no better time than now to implement strategies to grow your business while shrinking your footprint.
Elliott Jones is a business development executive at ECNG. Jones says that while almost everyone wants to cut costs, ECNG looks holistically at all matters related to energy, not just savings on commodity or fixing your gas or electricity price.
There are several sustainability programs and organizations available to MPO members designed with meat processors/ businesses in mind. Contact MPO for more information about any of the following programs. The MPO Energy program ECNG Energy Group is the largest provider of energy management solutions and services in Canada, working across all industries sectors. Some of the largest MPO members are already
FOR SALE
“ECNG drives costs out of the supply chain, for example, by focusing on strategic procurement strategies and aggregating the volumes of MPO members, to leverage the combined buying power in the market,” says Jones. “We’ve put together this energy program with the intention of being more than just a price point but more as your energy management provider helping members discover rebates, retrofit grants and savings that may have been missed. ECNG will do the leg work and the money goes right into your pocket, not ours.” Jones is proud of helping everyday operators to save and run energy-efficient businesses based on understanding their operations. He says his ultimate goal is removing the burden of uncertainty around costs. He also wants to demonstrate that ECNG brings a ton of value to the table with creative, proven recommendations for every kind of customer. Provision Coalition Cher Mereweather is one of Canada’s leaders in food industry sustainability. As founder and CEO of Provision Coalition Inc, Mereweather works directly with food companies to transform their business culture and operations. (Look in this issue for the Provision Coalition business profile!) I’ve spoken to Mereweather about the topic of energy consumption. She outlined 35 key quick wins for reducing energy consumption today, which you can find online at Provision Coalition’s blog.
3183 sq. ft. provincially inspected OMFRA processing plant. Zoned commercial 1 acer lot located on busy road with retail space on main floor, and 1394 sq. ft. office space on second floor. Hydro 3phase 208v, well water, and natural gas.
Contact Rick by phone at 905-945-4552 or e-mail at viksmeats@sourcecable.net 26
BlockTalk - Summer 2021
But quick wins are just the beginning of what’s possible. Most fascinating are Mereweather’s insights into one of the biggest barriers to sustainability for food industry businesses—with food operators so focused on the day-to-day—there is little to no measurement of actual efficiencies and operators are leaving big money on the table. Says Mereweather, customers typically “just want to sell more” which is understandable. But they’re not making the connection that value-driven customers today care about this. What business are you losing, what business aren’t you gaining? As an example, let’s look at food wastage. But I’m paying to divert my food waste, so I don’t have that problem. www.meatpoultryon.ca
