Three small businesses offering pet food and pet treats and other products in New York, California and North Carolina, USA, were announced as the winners of Green America's "People and Planet Award."
The People and Planet Award recognizes innovative US small businesses focusing on sustainability that integrate environmental and social considerations into their strategies and operations. The winners were selected by the public during a month-long online voting period.
The winners of US$5,000 prizes are: The Honest Kitchen in San Diego, California and Front Yard Coop in Asheville, North Carolina. The grand prize winner, Full Circle Seed, will receive US$10,000 in recognition of having received the highest number of votes.
"When we talk about benefiting people and the planet, it's important not to forget how animals play a role," said Fran Teplitz, Green America's executive co-director, in a press release. "Some business practices, including ones commonly used by the agriculture industry, put profits over corporate responsibility. Pet and animal products that are environmentally friendly and produced ethically are just as important today as ever."
The winning companies are:
Full Circle Feed
Full Circle Feed treats are made with vegetables, meats, fruits and breads from restaurant buffets that were prepared but not served.
"Full Circle Feed will use the funds to set up a more environmentally friendly production process and drying method,” Michael Amadori, founder of Full Circle Feed, said in a press release. “In particular, instead of using electricity or natural gas, we plan to use waste heat or biogas generated from anaerobic digestion to bake our dog biscuits.”
The Honest Kitchen
The Honest Kitchen offers 100 percent free-range, antibiotic-free and sustainably raised chicken and turkey. Only wild-caught, MSC-certified fish and non-GMO produce and organic seeds and grains are used. All of The Honest Kitchen's manufacturing takes place in North America to reduce transportation and carbon emissions.
"We're working towards furthering our goals in these areas, including the integration of free-range eggs into our supply chain and increasing our usage of grass fed beef, as well as other initiatives for packaging reduction and recycling,” Lucy Postins, founder of The Honest Kitchen, said in a press release. “We'll be using our prize to make a direct impact at our home office, by building a vegetable garden in our outdoor space and adding office kitchen composting facilities to help further reduce our environmental paw-print."
Front Yard Coop
The Front Yard Coop is the world's first solar-powered, self-propelled chicken coop. While chicken coops are a booming business and a growing segment of the DIY community, the Front Yard Coop is unique, offering technological innovations, solar power and contemporary design.
