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Impact // Innovation // Trusted Partner // Culture

Our Never-Ending Pursuit of Sustainability in the Cold Chain

September 30, 2021

Energy efficiency and sustainability are no longer buzzwords but a main priority for all players in the cold chain. As an industry leader, Lineage has been at the forefront of providing solutions to any issues facing the cold chain. We’ve been ahead of global sustainability concerns for years, but socioeconomic factors outside the cold chain sphere have forced all of us to double down on our efforts. Looking forward, we will leave no stone unturned in our pursuit of creating efficiencies throughout the cold chain.

Sustainability and energy efficiency are the new supply-chain goalposts.

The transportation sector of the U.S. economy ranks No. 1 in greenhouse gas emissions (epa.gov). In 2020, the MIT Center for Transportation released its first report on the state of supply chain sustainability. Among the key findings was that the supply chain is currently experiencing calls for reform and action in creating real sustainability from not only government agencies but also investors, consumer demands and even its own employees (mit.edu). Supply chain professionals are championing the development and execution of their companies’ sustainability initiatives to reduce the energy consumption of their businesses (Sinkovitz, 2021).

Looking at the global landscape, multinational corporations are increasingly requiring supplier adherence to their sustainability goals, and measurable progress is being achieved. The CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project) reported in 2019 that 35% of its program members actively worked with their suppliers on climate change initiatives in 2018, up from 23% in 2018 (Villena and Gioia, 2020).