NatureWorks was a proud sponsor of the Green Sports Alliance Summit 2022 held in Minneapolis, MN June 21 - 23. This year’s Summit began with tours of local MN sports venues such as Allianz Field and Xcel Energy Center, featuring sustainable efforts they’re making now to make a difference in greening sports.

Welcoming remarks and a CEO panel kicked off the conference segment of the Summit where both NatureWorks CEO and President, Rich Altice, and VP of Sales and Marketing, Matt Romberger delivered messages around product safety, growth and success of composting infrastructure, and the climate impact of diverting food waste from landfills including the use of healthy compost.

Roundtable discussions were tailored to venues and teams working on zero waste and food waste diversion / compost collection. Both Sr. Circular Economy Manager, Shannon Pinc, and Sr. Global Marketing and Communications Manager, Leah Ford, moderated and led these topics. In “The Composting Playbook with NatureWorks” roundtable, the new guide to using compostable packaging to divert waste from landfill was presented and discussed. Look for the Composting Playbook to be posted to the Green Sports Alliance website soon.

Even though "Single Stage Thermoforming Process" might sound like it's a simple process, creating a compostable, high performance K-Cup compatible capsule is complex! Follow along with NatureWorks Sr. Scientist, Nikushi Yatigala, as she walks through this process to perfection in the NatureWorks Applications Development Facility in Savage, MN.

NatureWorks is a Sustainability Partner of the upcoming 3M Open held in Blaine, Minnesota July 18 - 24, 2022. With our support, the 3M Open will be meeting some of their Sustainability Commitments like eliminating food waste with back-of-house organics recycling and front-facing organics recycling bins in high traffic areas on the course. The tournament is reducing plastic waste by implementing Ingeo-based BPI-certified compostable cups. All organics collected at the tournament will be picked up and processed by Specialized Environmental Technologies (SET) in Empire, MN.

Be sure to check out the latest short videos from the interview NatureWorks President and CEO, Rich Altice, had with PGA Tour Pro and NatureWorks #SustainabilityInGolf Ambassador, Brendon Todd, about sustainable changes they’re seeing in the game of golf. Look for the full video to be released the week of this year’s 3M Open! 

On June 24th, NatureWorks volunteers Ben Neisen, Kevy Konyenbelt, Chad Kamann, and Julia Harvey took a day to introduce Ingeo-based filament for 3D printing pens at the Junior Achievement North STEM camp. From design, execution, testing, and re-design, 22 students between the 4th - 7th grades were able to print creative & functional bubble wands together!

Congratulations to a third-generation manufacturer, Danny Mishek, who wanted to do his part to help conserve the environment. He began experimenting with plant-based materials over a decade ago and has since launched VistaTek and SelfEco.

Stillwater-based VistaTek manufactures the SelfEco product line, which includes industrial compostable cutlery, glassware and more. As a result of Mishek and his team’s innovation, fewer consumer goods end up in landfills.

SelfEco products are sustainable in two key ways. First, they are made from plants, not petroleum. And the plants used in production are renewable annually versus many years for tree-based products, according to the company's website. Second, they are industrial compostable, so don't need to end up in landfills. Read the full article below.