Industry trailblazers are already certifying the sustainable origin of their products, or are now aiming to achieve climate-neutral production by 2020, while others are looking for initial ideas about how to approach the subject of sustainability.

The pet industry has a major requirement for information on sustainable activities, products and services. That was enough reason for trade fair organiser WZF to launch the Interzoo Sustainability Initiative.

“We observe that exhibitors at Interzoo 2018 are talking more about sustainability, and that industry representatives are looking for information,” says Dr Rowena Arzt, Director of Exhibitions at WZF.

At the same time, it is clear that practical examples of how companies in the pet industry can approach this subject are too little known and not sufficiently available for many participants in this sector.

“Until now, no comprehensive overview has been available to show how the pet industry is dealing with this subject,” observes Hans-Jochen Büngener, Chairman of the Interzoo Exhibition Committee.

This is why WZF is investing in an Interzoo Sustainability Initiative: in an initial stage, it has engaged the Sustainable Transformation Lab at the Antwerp School of Management (AMS) to draw up a current situation report for the sector.

A few weeks before the fair, exhibitors at Interzoo received a questionnaire to document their experiences and plans in the area of sustainability. As part of the visitor survey, visitors are asked to provide their assessment on the question of sustainability.

Even so, this is just a first step. Next, the sustainability experts at AMS will highlight particular aspects of the topic in the pet industry, and identify and work up the best practices in the field.

The long-term goal of the Interzoo Sustainability Initiative is to work with AMS to create a handbook on sustainable development for the pet industry based on the research results. It will provide answers to questions such as “What opportunities are available for companies in the sector to more actively approach the subject of sustainability?”, and “What best practices are already established for the pet industry in terms of sustainability, and how can industry players learn from each other?”

Initial results from the WZF research project and the AMS Sustainability Transformation Lab, and other information on the subject of sustainability, are being presented at Interzoo as part of the Interzoo Sustainability Session, a short conference in the Brussels 2 room, NCC Mitte, from 13:00 to 14:30 on Tuesday 8 May 2018.

Further information is available at

https://www.interzoo.com/en/supporting-programme/sustainability-session.