Striving for more sustainability together

The Belgian sustainability network 'The Shift' held an interview with commercial manager Roel Schreurs about Moonen's role as chain director.

Source: Pulse Magazine | De Tijd | Photo: © Jonas Roosens

Moonen Packaging, based in the Limburg town of Weert, calls itself a 'chain director'. The company streamlines the packaging process from production to waste processing. For this to function, it's only natural that it cooperates with clients and suppliers. An example of this are the maize-coated cups made from cane sugar fibres, which Moonen supplies to the insurance company Achmea.

'Our goal is to share our knowledge and experience of sustainable business.'

The company's 17,000 employees use sixteen million coffee cups a year. 'They now come piled in a biodegradable bin bag and are transported to the Aterro waste processing plant, where they are converted into biogas and compost. As the story of the whole process is printed on the coffee cup, people become aware of what's going on,' says Roel Schreurs, commercial manager at Moonen.

Recently, Moonen has taken care of the distribution of a type of paper made from agricultural waste. For this undertaking, we chose to collaborate with PaperWise, a company founded by one of our former employees. 'We also jointly financed part of the product development,' adds Roel Schreurs. 'We could've distributed it exclusively, but we chose not to. Gains made in the short term do not outweigh the environmental benefits. This is something we are trying to communicate to as large an audience as possible.'

In 2014, Moonen was officially named the 'greenest company in the Netherlands'. 'Clients tell us how we inspired them to conduct their business sustainably. Our goal is to share our knowledge and experience of sustainable business. Many companies speak about it, but also find reasons not to do it. The right partners for us are those companies who do see a reason to do it – those who consider the opportunities, not the limitations. This is only possible once you implement it and take account of all factors.'