All India Management Association (AIMA) 2007 M.B.A Marketing Management Business Ethics

Environmental degradation can be better understood by examining a few of the events that have had a major impact on the environment like the Bhopal disaster and shell oil spill. < TOP >

6. Fetzer is recognized as a zero waste company by the state of California because of the subsequent initiatives taken by them:
Recycle: Fetzer recycles every thing from cardboard to antifreeze; compost organic waste and turn it into fertilizer; and work to keep materials out of the waste stream - by restoring oak barrels rather than discarding them.
Benefits: Recycling is less expensive than land filling. It all does make economic sense. Though it’s not like they’re using it as a competitive edge. It simply fits with how the company does business. Fetzer’s vision statement is to enhance the quality of life.
Building construction: The administration building, 10,000-square-foot facility, completed in 1996, is 1 of the world’s 1st large-scale examples of rammed-earth (underground) construction. It was built almost entirely with recycled wood. Carpets are natural fiber. Lights are on motion sensors. Heat comes from waste heat off chillers used in wine making. And instead of air conditioning, the building uses night-air cooling. Computerized and motorized windows open at night to admit cool air. Even landscaping is environmentally conscious. It’s “zeroscape, because the drought-resistant plants take little water.
Benefits: Since the lights are on motion sensors they go off as someone leaves the room, thus saving electricity. The photovoltaic array on the roof, which got up and running in June is the largest photovoltaic display in northern California not owned by a utility company. It supplies three-quarters of the building’s energy needs. All other power used by the winery is from renewable sources. The solar array really won’t pay for itself, but it was built with the help of grants. Renewable power is slightly more expensive, but Fetzer is off setting that by pursuing efficiencies in usage.
Vineyard: An organic approach that relies on natural pest control and soil management is used to grape growing. Techniques include the use of “cover crops” grown ranging from the vines, like crimson clover and purple vetch, which attract beneficial insects. They keep the bad guys in check. a different technique is “canopy management,” in which the leaf and cane canopy is opened to bring in sunlight, to decrease the chance of mold and rot, and eliminate the need for fungicides.
Benefits: The process that is used in the vineyard “brings the employees closer to the vine because they don’t have the quick fixes of chemicals. The farmers are better farmers as a outcome. And the grapes simply taste better. That’s where the financial payoff lies. There’s a few demand for specially tagged “organic” wine, which Fetzer meets with an organic label, Bonterra. Butit doesn’t tag most of its wine organic. Organic methods are a little more expensive to start with, but not in the long run.

Earning:   Approval pending.