Upcycling Makes Waste a Resource

The most efficient way to run your business, whether you are concerned about the environment or your pocket book, is through upcycling your business’ waste. Optimally, there should be no such thing as waste, because your source materials should be used for many things throughout their lifecycle. You originally purchase a material to make a product, then you use leftover material or byproducts as fuel or to create something new. If you don’t have any use for the material yourself, there are many other businesses who might have a high demand for it. You get multiple uses from one purchase, don’t pay to send waste to the landfill, and make money from another business wanting to purchase your business’ waste. This is “waste as a resource.”

What Is Upcycling?

Everyone knows about recycling and reusing a material so a new material doesn’t have to be made. Typically, the material degrades each time it is recycled and becomes less useful throughout its lifecycle until it eventually has no use at all. Upcycling is very similar to recycling except you are using a material for a completely different purpose that extends and increases its value.
According to Reliable Prosperity, “Only about 6% of the vast flow of materials generated by Americans, more than a million pounds per person per year, ends up in final products — and only 2% survives after a few weeks.”
We can be making much better use of our source materials and our money with upcycling initiatives.

How Upcycling Works

Businesses can use by-products from their manufacturing processes for other things. You can generate fuel from waste products to sustainably power your business or use waste materials from one manufacturing process to be the source material for another process.
Ford describes their resource-saving strategy on their website, “Between 30 and 40 percent of a typical aluminum coil is turned into scrap during the stamping process. This will now be recycled into new metal for our trucks using the closed-loop system.”
Many waste materials can’t be used by the business itself, but another business may have a high demand for it. You run your business and send your waste and byproducts to one or more businesses that need it.

Here is an example:

A brewery might send worms and composting material to a greenhouse.
This is such a valuable proposition that people have started creating eco-parks which helps business owners create the most sustainable supply chains. Some take the form of physical business groupings who benefit from each other’s processes. Others connect virtually, located in separate places but share resources among themselves for mutual benefit. It mirrors a symbiotic relationship in nature.

Taking the example a bit further:

The brewery and the greenhouse may both send materials to a renewable energy producer who then provides energy to both businesses.
Together, the businesses collectively generate zero waste. While any such relationship is beneficial, the eco-parks where the businesses are located in close proximity to each other provide the maximum benefit because the costs and environmental footprint of shipping waste materials is brought to a minimum.
Upcycling is so big that the city of Austin has created an online database of waste materials generated by Austin businesses to encourage upcycling as part of its 90% landfill diversion by 2040 goal. The database, the Austin Materials Marketplace, features “materials available” and “materials wanted” sections for businesses to communicate their needs with others. According to the AMM website, “As of February 2016, participants have saved or created $75,000 through marketplace activities.”