9 Ways Manufacturers Can Develop More Sustainable Products

If you’re a science fiction film buff, you may remember the 1973 American ecological dystopian film, Soylent Green. It featured a nightmarish tagline — Soylent Green is people. Uncanny, the film takes place in 2022. The plot revolves around an investigative murder against a backdrop of the devastation caused by the greenhouse effect — pollution, food shortages, depleted resources, poverty, and overpopulation — not much different from the issues we’re facing today.

As vulnerable as our planet is becoming, individuals, governments, and businesses are feeling the pressure to make changes using new concepts and frameworks that focus on creating products and services that are more sustainable and more circular. Why now? Blame it on COVID-19. The pandemic exposed the inefficiencies in the supply chain, making the public more aware of existing issues. COVID-19 also highlighted the dangers of what happens when you have lean supply chains, as many brands found out fast by running out of inventory and not keeping pace with customer demand.