The Sirius effect:

Sirius has always been at the forefront of new trends. In part, this is because as a small company, understanding what new ideas are coming and choosing which ones to follow is what keeps us alive. We do not have the resources to wait around and see if a trend will become a sure thing before we embrace it. Economic sustainability, however, is not just a trend. It is becoming an important aspect of economic policy in the EU. Embracing sustainable practices is therefore a sound business practice.

Economic sustainability is a system where impacts to the environment and the economy are minimized as much as possible. It recognizes two very fundamental truths: that no resource is infinite, and that in order to maintain our current standards of living, we need to ensure that the resources we have are used wisely. It runs counter to the current model of capitalism, in which the ideal is perpetual economic growth, with the idea that bigger and more is always better. For a long time it was assumed that we could have either economic growth or a sustainable future; now we’re asking, “Is this really true?” Does there really have to be a trade-off between environment and the economy?

The answer to this is rather mixed, in part because there is currently no singular manner in which to quantify economic growth and environmental protection. In the Netherlands, currently, a major policy war is brewing between the livestock farmers and the government trying to keep the country compliant with the nitrogen-waste requirements of the EU. The government has issued a series of proposals that would greatly impede the growth of these livestock farms, which on the surface seems like a not-such-a-bad thing. However, the export of livestock is a multibillion-euro industry in the Netherlands, and when coupled with current inflation rates across the Eurozone this policy could have very real impacts on consumers. The problem with doing nothing, though, is that we cannot afford to wait until we know what the impacts will be. 

Sirius been promoting environmentally-friendly chemistry for a long time: biodegradable chemicals, sustainable production, non-GMO technology. It’s not just because we want our planet healthy, it’s also good for the bottom line: using less hot water, cleaning product, and/or treatment agents means that we save you money. For consumers and end-customers, price is one of the major obstacles to adopting a more sustainable lifestyle (the other two being “lack of interest” and “lack of knowledge”). Lowering the cost for the consumers would be a good start towards economic sustainability, but this is still far from the ideal of a circular economy and climate-neutral goals that have been stated. 

However, the additional changes that must be made go beyond the ability of any one company, even one so nimble as Sirius. The changes that must be made to achieve the current goals for economic sustainability are far-ranging and systemic. We need to redefine success to something more than just numbers on a chart and work for something beyond increasing shareholder values. What that “something” is, though, isn’t really defined yet.  For Sirius, that “something” is a cleaner planet, using innovation to find new chemical answers for old problems. 

What’s yours? And what is it for your end customers?

How can we get there together?

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