Finding a green fulfilment service for your online business

Order fulfilment will never be 'green'. Products need storing, packaging and shipping, this needs energy and materials. But some fulfilment services are definitely greener than other.

Shipping and transportation are one of the most environmentally unfriendly elements of ecommerce businesses and responsible for a large percentage of carbon dioxide emissions. So, when packaging and shipping your goods a fulfilment service with a commitment to the environment is a must.

When looking for a mail fulfilment partner you want to make sure they measure up and have the environment in mind when looking after your shipping.

Here are a few things to consider.

Green Credentials
Do they have any ‘Green’ credentials on their website or promote them on social media such as a carbon neutral status and details of eco-friendly initiatives?

If a business is truly focussed on being eco-friendly, then they’ll be proud to show you what they’re doing to limit their environmental impact and highlight their ‘green’ credentials.

79% of all customers said it is important for brands to provide full transparency and authenticity, like sustainability certifications, when they’re purchasing goods or services.

Asendia has its own micro-site highlighting all this and more. They also are a corporate partner with the Woodland Trust and are certified by EcoAct, an organisation that helps business increase and achieve its eco-friendly targets.

Greener Transport
Shipping deliveries and getting them to their final destination involves vans, trucks and other means of transport. But how clean are they?

With stricter regulation of electric vehicles in inner cities the use of greener modes of transport with low or zero emissions including bikes and electric vehicles are on the increase. Look into whether they have a ‘green’ fleet or are they investing in electric vehicles and offsetting their fuel and energy use.

John Lewis announced its mission to completely eliminate the use of fossil fuels for its 4,800-vehicle fleet by 2030, saving around 20,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide every year.

Sustainable Packaging
What is their packaging material policy and how do they source the packaging or recycle any they use? Given that packaging makes up a huge 30% of the ecommerce carbon footprint co packaging in a fulfilment services operations are a necessity.

You want a fulfilment service that encourages avoidance of single use plastic wherever possible eliminating plastic consumption and replacing it with sustainable plastic-free packaging including the use of 100% recycled materials that cut out waste.

Efficient returns
Do they offer a returns solution? If so, is it environmentally conscious? What about international returns, this is much more complex and may not even be affordable, but you should at least ensure goods are re-used or given to a charity, rather than ending up in landfill.

Fulfilling Sustainable Ambitions
Businesses like Asendia are making a huge difference to our environment. By taking similar positive steps others can follow suit by introducing enhanced sustainability practices into their warehouses and distribution centres to minimise environmental impact through the services and systems they offer.

Their e-commerce logistics solutions are having a huge impact on reducing their carbon footprint, along with supporting and advising customers with their own sustainability objectives. From carbon off-setting and using sustainable energy to sourcing and using environmentally friendly packaging and continuously looking at ways they can do better – sustainability is a core focus as demonstrated by Asendia’s sustainability goals.

If you’d like to find out more about how we can support your own eco-friendly policies and what we’re doing to limit our environmental impact across the word. Get in touch..