FORT SMITH, Ark -BC is a leader in sustainable environmental management, and the effective waste management procedures and solutions within our province contribute greatly to this.
In a circular economy, organic waste isn’t sent to the landfill; it’s used as a resource for local communities. This philosophy was the foundation upon which Vancouverite Jack Diamond and his sons, Gordon and Charles, launched West Coast Reduction Ltd. (WCRL) in 1964.
WCRL’s Vancouver waterfront rendering plant and export facility became the first of its kind in the city. And today, the fourth-generation family business continues this legacy as Western Canada’s largest independent rendering company — reducing and recycling animal by-products into pet food, animal feed, fertilizer, and renewable energy.
The organic materials that WCRL is responsible for (from the meat industry to local supermarkets) represent the equivalent of 59% of all organics collected in Metro Vancouver.
WCRL works directly with local businesses and farmers to help them dispose of raw materials — that would otherwise end up in the landfill — safely and responsibly.
Its Redux program covers the collection of cooking oil, pre-consumer organics, and grease trap cleaning, along with recycling. This range of services contributes to a more sustainable local food supply, reducing greenhouse gasses company-wide by 320,000 metric tonnes annually.
But what is the driving force behind this local business working to make BC more sustainable? “Having a good, loyal, and reliable team of people to support me has been one of the main secrets of my success,” Gordon Diamond tells Daily Hive.
“I have never been too proud to seek help or to hire talented people. The strength of the business is its people. This has been the case from the very beginning.”