Let’s face it: we live in a world where it’s necessary to read labels and make sure that what we’re buying is safe for ourselves and our families. This is especially true when it comes to products that that come in contact with the food we eat. While some level of comfort can be discerned from looking at the country of origin or seeing what material a product is made from, the curious consumer is still left with many questions:

• Was this product produced with any regard to environmental impact?
• Did the manufacturer adhere to federal environmental regulations? Better yet, were there any regulations in place in the item’s country of origin?
• Were fair labor practices employed? Were health benefits and fair wages given, and was child labor forbidden?
• Did the factory have any safety procedures for its employees to keep them out of harm’s way?
• How closely was this product supervised during its production ? Can I be certain no substitute ingredients were used to make it beyond what is labeled?
• How far did this product have to travel before it got to the store I found it in?

Sustainability is something we  take seriously at Nordic Ware, and we believe the term reaches far beyond what a product is made from and whether it can be recycled or not.  We pride ourselves on taking an all-encompassing approach to sustainability, and base many of our company decisions around whether or not something will help us be viable and significant for many years to come.

Meeting and exceeding US environmental regulations for air and water, using BPA-free and melamine-free materials in our products, and using nonstick coatings that are water-based rather than solvent-based are just a handful of the ways that Nordic Ware participates in being sustainable. We are able to focus our close attention on each and every product coming out of our factory as it is made, since our corporate headquarters are located at the same facility in which our US-made products are produced. Our employees enjoy fair wages, a generous benefit program, on-the-job training, and above all else pride in the quality and sustainability of the products they produce.”

We believe reducing our eco-footprint is an important step to take for sustainability. Because we produce the vast majority of our products in America, it’s easy  to see they travel a significantly shorter distance than a product coming from overseas. A shorter distance traveled equates to a smaller carbon footprint for the products that come into your home.

The little things we do each day throughout our factory add up in the long run to create a noticeable difference, and keep us on course to be  a fully sustainable business:

• Nordic Ware has been awarded the Green Business designation by our city and is a member of Minnesota WasteWise.
• Energy-efficient LED lighting and heating systems are installed throughout our facility.
• Our factory and manufacturing ovens are heated with natural gas, the cleanest of conventional fuels available.
• We practice energy conservation by reducing energy usage in all forms when areas of a facility are not in use. Our new Shipping Building has motion-sensor lighting.
• Nordic Ware consistently exceeds US federal, state and local standards for wastewater, solid waste treatment, and waste disposal.
• We request no idling of trucks at our shipping docks to reduce air emissions.
• Obsolete or “second” quality products are donated to local charities rather than thrown away.
• We recycle many tons of aluminum and steel scrap each year from our factory. We have recycled metal since the company’s early days because it’s always made economic sense to do so.
• We give our factory employees time daily for stretching exercises to prevent repetitive stress injuries.
• We have installed solar panels on the southside of our shipping building and planning to expand across more of our factory.

Powered by the Sun: Nordic Ware Factory Solar Panels

Our new 450 kWp solar array system was first commissioned at the end of March 2022 and expanded across the entire length of the south side of our factory in 2023 in our continued committment to reducing our carbon footprint for a more sustainable future. In our first year with our first installment, it generated enough electricity to eliminate 185,052 lbs. of CO2 emissions by the local power company. This is the equivalent to “planting” 1,390 new trees!

In the Fall of 2023, we tripled our solar capacity, about 1,000ft long and two stories high along the Greenway in Minneapolis. It’s humbling to walk next to these powerful panels and realize the impact they are having not only at our factory but in our local community. Here are few more fun facts about our solar array:

• There are 838 total panels spanning 1/4 mile in length!
• Our array is vertially mounted to optimize year-round solar production. This makes a big difference where snow is a reality up to 6+ months of the year, so we avoid snow pile up.
• On weekends when we are not operating, the energy we produce is fed back to the local area via the electrical utlitiy provider, benefiting our neighbors.

We’re excited to keep adding a variety of new trees and plantings along the south side of our building on the path to the many large, mature trees that shade our corporate campus.  We look forward to enhancing our factory and office landscapes with green and welcoming spaces for employees and visitors to enjoy!