What is Green Logistics and what benefits does it bring?

What is green logistics?

Companies nowadays are constantly scrutinized for their apparent lack of awareness when it comes to the environment. To address that, many are shifting gears and attempting to reverse this stigma and implementing new and effective methods in order to “be more green.” Among these is the addition of green logistics, which is using eco-friendly methods to reduce the footprint that logistics can tend to leave. This goes from the marketing phase of logistics supply chains, all the way to customers receiving their purchase. There are many benefits to implementing green logistics, which include long term benefits for companies.

Benefits of green logistics

• New opportunities
• Customer satisfaction
• A seal of approval
• Long term profit
• A healthier planet

 

New opportunities

 

Washing away the stigma of not being eco friendly could be problematic, but one of the many benefits of using green logistics is how it allows for cooperation and working together within previously incomparable companies. Companies now have the opportunity to work together and unify to present eco-friendly changes that could prove useful for many other companies in the future.

 

Customer satisfaction

 

People are becoming more and more aware of the impacts of people on the environment. With this in mind, customers are much more likely to purchase from companies that implement these types of strategies. They ask questions like whether something was sustainably transported or if any sort of effort was made in order to make the process a bit more eco friendly. They also would like to know if the products themselves come from a sustainable source. This all becomes a way to build a customer base that is loyal and willing to not only purchase from certain companies, but tell their friends and family to do so as well.

 

A seal of approval

With global warming being a hot topic when it comes to companies and their contributions to it, switching to green logistics would help the image out a lot in terms of showing both customers and potential investors that they are willing to change for the better. Reputations are on the line here and companies must adapt in order to reduce the risk of becoming irrelevant, or worse. This goes back to customer satisfaction as well.  This would include a large marketing campaign in order to probe the validity of the statements, but if companies decide to stick to what they say, there should be absolutely no issues, thus ensuring a smooth transition.

 

Long term profit

Green logistics could very well prove useful in the long run for many companies. It helps reduce emissions, cut costs, and reduce waste as well. All of these contribute to faster and more efficient methods of doing business. Not to mention the amount of money many of these would save. All it would take is a one time investment in order to allow some of the changes to take place, but once results are established, they could seriously reduce many costs. This could go on forever, with an increase in profits over a very long period of time.

 

A healthier planet

Perhaps the most important contribution that green logistics implementation would allow is that the planet would be much better if for it. Reducing the carbon footprint of a company ensures an attempt to help the planet in many ways and could allow for the collective help to reduce the amount of harm that usually goes hand in hand with certain businesses. It all starts with small things, but eventually all of these seemingly minor attempts would be very helpful to animals, plants, and areas that could otherwise be harmed by many of the usual logistics negatives to the planet. 

 

We recommend that you continue updating yourself on the latest trends and acquire the right knowledge. If you want to know more about what is green logistics and what benefits does it bring. We invite you to take a look at our Master's degree in Logistics, Transport and Supply Chain Management