Making sustainability more than a buzzword
Reduced carbon emissions, social responsibility, environmental quality… these phrases are easy to use. But the true measure of any company’s commitment to sustainability are its actions – and its products.
At DSM we have identified three major areas where our products and services continue to make a real difference to people, planet and profit. These are: Global Shifts, Climate and Energy, and Health and Wellness.
Global shifts
One of the greatest global shifts centers on the increasing role that technology plays in our day-to-day lives, as well as the continuing industrialization of emerging economies like China, India and Brazil.
Our plastics and resins are reducing the environmental impact of computers, mobile devices and other consumer products. That means limiting hazardous materials and emissions; reducing energy and water use; and recycling rare earth metals and minerals. Our products are also enabling the developing world to build everything from bridges to cars in a more sustainable way.
Health and wellness
Perhaps the greatest sustainability challenge of all is how a planet with finite resources will be able to sustain an estimated population of nine billion people in 2050. Our increasingly bio-based chemical expertise is helping maximize the yield of the world’s crops; while our vitamins and nutrients are helping to feed two billion malnourished people in the developing world.
Our specialty ingredients for food and beverages are helping to produce food more efficiently with a lower carbon footprint and added health benefits. Beyond sustenance, our biomedical materials are prolonging people’s active lives and our work in regenerative medicine - combining our expertise in the life sciences and the materials sciences - could pave the wave for major developments in the treatment of heart disease and other potentially fatal conditions.
Climate and energy
Where to begin? Our products are enabling the search for oil – from industrial ropes made from Dyneema® fiber that anchor oil rigs three kilometers below sea level, to our unique polyacrylamides that are injected into oil reservoirs in the seabed, literally soaking up the water and pushing the oil to the surface.
Looking beyond fossil fuels, we are a major player in the bio-based economy – from biogas to bio-refineries to bio-fuels. We are enabling wind-assisted shipping and helping to produce the gargantuan windmill blades used for wind turbines. Our anti-reflective glass has helped achieve world records in solar energy conversion.
We also contribute to the planet’s most precious resource: water. We create flocculants that purify water for millions of people in countries like Brazil and India. And our vinylester resins have enabled next-generation pipes and vessels to be built for turning seawater into clean water.
