There are many paths to health and wellness. Many are complicated, while some are more straightforward. Most are personal, but the path we’re taking today unites us all.
Fullscript is now a certified carbon-neutral organization, neutralizing our carbon footprint from January 1st, 2020 onwards. It’s a decision inspired by the thousands of people who start their wellness journeys every day, and today, we start one of our own.
The need to be better
The scientific community agrees that greenhouse gas emissions are changing our climate at a catastrophic speed, threatening our very existence. As an organization whose purpose is to help people get better, we can’t ignore what science is telling us.
Carbon dioxide concentration in our atmosphere has been stable for millennia. In the last 70 years, anthropogenic emissions have caused this to soar past 400ppm. Credit: NOAA
In 2013, the U.S. healthcare industry was responsible for 9% to 10% of the nation’s greenhouse gases, and if healthcare were a country, it’d rank thirteenth in the world for emissions. Everything from medical facilities and vehicles to the production of medication and medical devices contributes to healthcare’s massive carbon footprint. It’s causing heat waves, disease, water contamination, and air pollution, and without clean air to breathe, safe drinking water, and quality food, everyone’s wellness suffers. There’s an undeniable connection between climate change and wellness, and it’s our responsibility to commit to a kind of change that supports everyone’s health.
What’s measured is managed
With the help of Carbonzero, we’ve estimated our carbon footprint for 2020 will be approximately 3400 tCO2e — roughly equivalent to driving your family sedan 22,869 miles every day for a year. In early 2021, Carbonzero will complete and confirm Fullscript’s 2020 Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Inventory, and moving forward, we’ll be measuring and reporting our carbon footprint annually to maintain transparency and accountability.
Emissions come from various sources at Fullscript. Breaking them down gives us a clear sightline into where we need to improve.
Using data from 2019, we expect corporate GHG emissions to be distributed as shown.
We’re proud to be investing in high quality, certified offsets through Carbonzero and UPS, starting with investments in North American afforestation to reforest unused farmland. And though this is worth celebrating, we know it’s not enough. Carbon neutrality is only the first step in our sustainability journey.
Our goal is to become more sustainable year-over-year. We’re revisiting and reinventing our practices to implement renewable ways to power our operations and use more sustainable materials in our supply chain. Like integrative medicine, we believe in prevention and collaboration. We encourage our practitioners, patients, and peers to share the ideas they want to transform into action.
Our climate commitment
We’ve split our climate commitment into two phases: one phase to measure and offset our carbon footprint and another to reduce it.
Phase One
1. Measure — We commit to working with verified third-party organizations, such as Carbonzero, to measure our carbon footprint every year.
2. Offset — We commit to investing in independently certified projects which meet internationally recognized standards and permanently reduce GHG emissions.
Phase Two
3. Listen — We commit to listening to practitioners, patients, team members, and the scientific community to stay informed on the latest in sustainability practices.
4. Change — We commit to implementing necessary changes to be a more sustainable organization.
5. Repeat — We commit to repeating this process as needed when our company, industry, and perspectives evolve.
As sustainability breakthroughs continue to occur, we know this journey will never end. For that, we’re grateful. We are dedicated to being more sustainable and refuse to force patients and practitioners to choose between their health and their planet.
Let’s make change happen together
We invite all of you to join us on our journey and encourage you to share your ideas while sharing ours. We want to push the healthcare industry forward in a more sustainable direction. Climate change is more significant than any individual, and it’s time we put aside our differences and work together to take better care of the planet we all call home.
There are many paths to wellness, but our one great unifier is our planet. From the ground we stand on to the water we drink, and the air we breathe, our world needs to be healthy for any of us to live well. We can’t stand for health and wellness if we aren’t willing to stand up and protect our home.
We’re all-in. Are you?
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So many great thoughts about packaging. I know this is for phase two but hopefully you can keep this in mind when you start that conversation. There are so many neat innovations out there like MUSHROOM® PACKAGING. This could replace plastic bubble wrap for all the glass containers.
In addition to reducing plastic in cities that compost this could easily be returned back to the Earth.
I am sure there are many more options out there to research when the time comes. Thanks for taking steps in the right direction!
Thank you for your feedback and ideas on packaging options, Danny!
I am a consumer and waking up to this apocalyptic morning from haze from forest fires, I read your mission statement and couldn’t applaud you more. I am sending this to others and spreading the word. Thank you so much for taking bold initiative and doing what’s right for our planet. Leaders like you bring me hope for my grandchildren and this planet. You have my orders for life.
Pat, thank you so much for taking the time to comment and share your thoughts. We appreciate your support!
How can you claim to be carbon neutral when you choose to ship UPS. UPS use antiquated ,fuel sucking vans, delivering door to door like honey bees and Canada Post deliver to neighbourhood mail boxes in much newer ,more fuel efficient, smaller vans. My postal box is 75 metres up the street and I have no idea where the UPS pickup is in town. I have orders sent to two different addresses when I need to ,therefore I would prefer Canada post shipping for my orders.
Hi Don, thank you for your feedback. At this time, Canadian orders ship by both Canada Post and UPS. If you have any specific delivery questions, please reach out to our Support team and we would be happy to assist!
This is so great!! I feel so much better buying from companies trying to make a difference for people, animals and the planet, Keep up the great work Fullscript!
To add to many comments around this – it would be great if you could –
– take back the foil bubble wrap and freezer packs for reuse- these are so aggravating b/c they just go straight to the landfill.
– work with the supplement companies to package the supplements in anything other than plastic – aluminum or glass (see what Meow Meow Tweet is during with their packaging)
– have the option for refills – so the supplements could be shipped in compostable bags or other packaging and then added to existing containers (Bite toothpaste bits does this)
– Had reusable shipping boxes/containers that we could send back for reuse – reducing cardboard usage.
I love that you’re committed to being carbon neutral and that you care! Thank you!
I save the bubble wrap because it’s great for moving or sending someone something in the mail or courier. I also save the freezer packs. Why would anyone throw these items out? Surely there are others you know that might need these items?
Yes, every little bit helps. The box is either reused or put in the recycle bin. I do not wish for refills, I prefer brand new bottles.
If I had a preference for types of containers, it would always be glass bottles and not plastic.
Thank you for that valuable feedback, JT!
Thanks very much for your comment, Loren! We are getting such great feedback from our community, thank you for being a part of it! Keep a lookout for Phase Two where we’ll be discussing packaging.
Thank you for notifying us of your wonderful Zero News! We appreciate what you’re doing; how difficult and expensive it must be and yet, how very important. Love you for your commitments!
I totally agree that the continuers that the supplements come in are far too large. Small amount of pills in the bottom of a near empty container. Such an obvious waste.
Thank you for sharing this update and being transparent. Hoping you will inspire others.
Packaging is a great next step. I am now an avod fullscript fan. I love supporting a company taking steps to help improve the quality of our planet. A sincere thank you!
Thank you for taking these vital steps towards a sustainable future! One idea I have, that perhaps you might be in a position to forward, is to package supplements in bottles actually sized to their contents. So many supplements arrive 1/6 full. Perhaps there could be flat packaging made of re-newable “plastic” or other inventive solutions. Or fill the bottle and have it be 6-12 months worth of pills. I know I cringe everytime I open a plastic bottle of supplements to find a paltry pile of pills at the bottom. Thanks for listening!
Hi Lisa, thank you so much for this idea. We recognize product packaging can have a large impact on one’s footprint and we will definitely forward this to our brand partners to consider for future manufacturing practices. We appreciate your feedback. Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any other comments or questions on our efforts!
Seconding Lisa’s concern – but also suggesting you take a look at alternatives that include vacuum packing. Moustache coffee does this successfully. They have had some issues but it looks like they worked them out. With supplements, it may be more complex and packaging would need to be resealable to keep contents viable for life of amount sent. There might also be other ways to make. Toothpaste is now offered in chewable tablets. Please continue with your efforts. Any increment is an improvement. Thanks!
Also,
second this suggestion. I get Bite Toothpaste Bits and they ship the refills in sealed, flatish paper bags in a cardboard box sealed with paper rather than cellophane tape.
I’m so glad to hear this because there is way too much waste in this area of packaging!
Reforesting our country is a commendable action. Thank you for taking that step.
Excellent work! More impressed and aligned with you now than ever. Fantastic and exemplary! You are a model for all companies who care to follow. This offers us as consumers, practitioners or collaborators an obvious choice, and allows those of us who will be future app developers, a roadmap to follow. Much appreciated.
great work, thanks for sharing about this.
Wow, hard to choose between those three options, which are ALL critical.
I have been aware that Fullscript is more attentive to shipping/packing environmental issues than, say, dear old Emerson (who hassn’t even seemed interested). . . and i am glad to hear you are moving more and more in a responsible direction. It definitely impacts my choices in suppliers.
Yes, Great Work…you are appreciated!
Terrific! Thanks so much!
As well as lowering shipping size and using packing materials that can be recycled, there should be a consideration to have the items packaged in recyclable materials.
Thank you very much for reaching out! We are excited to hear from our community members – your feedback is so important. Phase One includes offsets with afforestation. Packaging updates are something we will be addressing soon in Phase Two.
This is a wonderful commitment to make! Thank you.
However, since shipping is the greatest contribution that your company makes to GHG emissions, could you consider making your products available on site to practitioners? My Naturopath always recommends the Pure brand- maybe she should carry it in her office so we can purchase it there and you can avoid shipping to multiple addresses?
I realize it is more work for the doctors and practitioners, but hey- we all need to step up to this challenge.
Gay Chanler
Thank you so much for this! I am deeply grateful for your attention to sustainable action on behalf of ALL people! There is no more time left to take action. The health of our bodies is intimate with the health of our surroundings. It’s almost like a big DUH!
Appreciate this! Keep up the good work.
Fantastic! This is great work and an impressive example of leadership. Thank you for sharing your CarbonZero results and I appreciate how you presented CO2 concentrations over 800.000 years (NOAA).
product packaging for Imvexxy could be greatly reduced.
Hi Susan, thank you so much for reaching out! We love hearing from our community. Packaging materials will be addressed soon in Phase Two. At this time, we are focused on offsets with afforestation.
It would be great if the foil bags and freezer blocks could be returned to Natural Partners for reuse. There is no good way to recycle these and we get them every month. We suggested some time back that NP do a call tag so we could send them back each month or so, but then it went by the wayside. It should be implemented for everyone.
Thank you for that important feedback, Kerie! We greatly appreciate hearing from our community. Packaging materials are something we will be addressing soon, so please keep an eye out! Our first phase includes offsets with afforestation.