News

Aroma Housewares is First in Green

San Diego

Green. It's much more than a color these days.

As trends in every sector of our culture continue to march toward a greener tomorrow, the housewares industry is buzzing with words like sustainable and eco-friendly. But while many of these words have yet to be put into action, one organization has been recognized by the San Diego Green Area Business Program for raising the bar. Aroma Housewares' corporate headquarters in San Diego has become the first commercial office building to be awarded green status by the county-sponsored program.

David Kellerman, Operations Manager for Aroma, heads the company's local green initiatives and is proud of this latest accomplishment.

"Being the first under San Diego's new Green Business Program means a lot because we led the way," he said. "We can say we are green and do little things to make people think we are green, but having our building certified shows our employees, industry and the community that we aren't just talking, but doing."

The certification process begins with reducing trash production and increasing recycling output. Kellerman estimates that trash will be reduced by two-thirds, with a corresponding increase in recycled waste. Energy and water conservation measures have been implemented wherever possible, vastly reducing the building's carbon footprint.

Aroma's San Diego office next has a workspace EnergyStar™ rating in its sights, with the possibility of an LEED EB Silver Certification further out upon the horizon.

But the building isn't the only thing green about Aroma. Already the U.S. market leader in rice cookers, Aroma has made it a major focus to provide green kitchen electric products that focus on the health and well being of consumers. By 2009, they aim to have replaced all Styrofoam and excess packaging with a slimmed-down version made of recycled cardboard and to have switched to printing with soy-based inks.

On the global front, Aroma recently opened a green production and design facility in Suzhou, China. This facility will produce health-oriented kitchen appliances using eco-friendly production methods. It is currently applying for RoHS, ISO 9001, ISO 14000, and QS08000 certification.

Environmental protection, social responsibility and customer health are the core values around which Aroma will focus its operations.

"This is not just a one person project," noted Kellerman. "This movement is the responsibility of the company as a whole. The hearts and minds of our entire staff are continually changing to think first of the environment and what we can do to make a difference."