Lucio Tan, Jr. On Why Sustainability is Important in Business

 

As it celebrates the success of its 165 years, Tanduay Distillers, Inc. (TDI) looks to the future by doing its share in protecting the earth's resources. TDI President and Chief Operating Officer Lucio "Bong" Tan, Jr. sees the company continuing the green initiatives it started years back and looking for ways to make its operations even more environmentally friendly.

"We always strive to find a healthy balance between environmental development and operational efficiency. We have realized this long ago in Tanduay, we never stopped in looking for better ways to ensure we do our part for the sake of the environment to ensure the future of our business,"

According to Tan Jr., stakeholders do not only demand strong business performance, but for business organizations to champion socially and environmentally sustainable as well as responsible business practices.

Sustainability should be part of the company’s corporate DNA, he said, emphasizing how the transformation to a zero-waste facility of TDI’s distillery in Batangas has provided greater value for business over the years.

“Businesses need to level up our game in making environmentally sound decisions in our operations. As a result of transferring into sustainable business practices, we were able to derive, direct and indirect values, that improved our processes and our relationships to our stakeholders,”

Under Tan, Jr., TDI has taken on various green initiatives through its award-winning distillery, Absolut Distillers, Inc. (ADI), in Lian, Batangas. These include the following: the establishment of a bioethanol facility with an expected production volume of 3 million liters per month; the operation of a 2.04-megawatt solar power plant; initiating an orga-ponics operation where it makes use of its distillery effluent (slop) as the main fertilizer of its plants; registering in the Anaerobic Digester Project of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) Project of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol (a UN-sponsored program that aims to reduce harmful gas emissions into the environment).

"As a company that operates a manufacturing plant, we are very much aware of the role we play in making sure that the products we make should not be to the detriment of the resources we use. We want our operations to be environmentally sustainable not just for our own benefit, but for the good of the community and people we serve,"

These initiatives were recognized by various environmental organizations. In 2011, it received the International Green Apple Environment Award from the Green Organisation at the British House of Commons in London, England. ADI was cited for "viewing their waste products as commodities." The distillery operation of TDI has, likewise, been lauded and has received multiple awards from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).