A CE Indicator Scorecard and Circular Economy Business Model Canvas for the Food and Beverage Industry

Abstract

A circular economy (CE) is seen as needed in all industry sectors to manage finite resources and to reduce the impact of production and consumption of goods on the planet. While the food and beverage industry has already many measurements in place to ensure cleaner production, a transition towards a CE requires a broader systems perspective. Insights from the field of Industrial Ecology (IE) are used to develop ways to measure CE. Based on the biological loop of the butterfly diagram of the Ellen MacArthur foundation, water, organic materials and especially nutrients were defined as core focus points for a CE in the food and beverage industry. A CE for this sector needs to include a systems perspective, minimizing losses of nutrients, water, and energy along the entire life-cycle of products. In contrast to the technical loop, it is significantly more challenging to achieve a closed loop as production is connected to natural processes (when growing the raw materials).
However, companies can develop strategies to take into account best practice of resource use. To best support companies in developing strategies for business models for a CE, a review of existing business models was performed.
CE was explored within the overarching category of sustainable business models to ensure the development of a Circular Economy Business Model Canvas (CEBMC).
Based on this CEBM canvas, a set of 14 CE indicators was developed in the form of a scorecard to measure the progress of companies in the food and beverage industry in terms of CE. These indicators are based on water, material, nutrients, energy, customer, supply, production (water & energy), employees, partners, transportation, packaging, profit, system consideration, and pollution prevention and were obtained by letting companies fill in a questionnaire with a set of 24 questions (see appendix IV). The indicator results are shown in a spiderweb and were presented as equal (thus not weighed) as CE is considered an equally important element in all aspects of the BM canvas. The CEBM canvas and the CE indicator scorecard are available for use in Microsoft Excel.
The developed canvas and indicator scorecard were reviewed and validated through a peer review session, experts from academia, consultancies and companies in the field.
A thesis research project with SEMiLLA IPStar B.V., the technology transfer partner of the MELiSSA space program, and a pilot study of the BioMakery at the La Trappe brewery in Koningshoeven, Tilburg, showed the functioning of the framework in practice, including its strong and weak points. The final chapter of the thesis provides recommendations for the companies involved in the pilot study, as well as recommendations to industry, government and consultancies for developing a CE.