Add Kraft to the growing list of companies that turn waste into energy. Two of the company’s New York cheese plants plan to turn used whey into biogas—enough to provide energy to 2,600 homes. Previously, Kraft relied on other methods to get rid of its waste.

The company used to concentrate whey and send it off-site for use as animal feed or fertilizer on farm fields. But the new waste-to-energy plan will remove the CO2 emissions associated with transporting waste off-site.

Kraft’s announcement is part of a larger company-wide plan to reduce CO2 emissions by 25 percent and manufacturing plant waste by 15 percent.

Other companies getting on the waste-to-energy bandwagon include Anheuser-Busch, McDonald’s,and Chrysler.

I expect to see many more companies joining these heavyweights in the near future, as waste-to-energy is beneficial for everyone involved. Companies reduce transportation costs for shipping waste, local inhabitants get alternative energy, and the press gets a story. It seems like a no-brainer to me.

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Ariel Schwartz (374 Posts)

Ariel Schwartz was formerly the editor of CleanTechnica and is a contributor at Fast Company, Inhabitat, Triple Pundit, SF Weekly, and NBC Bay Area Online. A graduate of Vassar College, she has previously worked in publishing, organic farming, documentary film, and newspaper journalism. Her interests include permaculture, hiking, skiing, music, relocalization, and cob (the building material). She currently resides in San Francisco, CA.