This blog was written by Tavor White, CEO of Chews Happiness, a pet products business based in Colorado, USA.
Chews Happiness is a social enterprise as much as it is a business. As such, our mission is to spread happiness to you, your pet, our global neighbors and the planet.
We’ve been dedicated from the start to run our company with ethical and sustainable principles in mind. That’s why we have earned a Top 20 Pet Company Ranking from the Pet Sustainability Coalition!
The pet products industry is huge with tens of billions of dollars in annual revenue in the USA alone. Unfortunately, with loads of plastic used in pet product packaging and little (although growing) attention to using organic and other low carbon ingredients, it is also quite harmful to the environment.
Chews Happiness® is a small, special pet products company trying to do its minute part to nurture Mother Earth. We feel that if we all do our small part to make the world a better place, that our combined efforts will yield huge, noticeable results. By taking a holistic approach to business and the world, our goal is to create a never-ending Happiness Cycle® for pets, people, and the planet.
How are we achieving our mission?
We do so by bringing artisanal products to America’s dogs that are as eco-friendly as is possible and that support indigenous farmers, herders, craftswomen, and others living low carbon lifestyles. For example, we offer dog treats in plastic-free packaging made from handcrafted, recycled paper and reclaimed cotton (USDA certified biobased package containing 99% USDA certified biobased content). We also produce all of our handcrafted dog treats and yak down dog sweaters in Bhutan, the only carbon negative country on the planet. Energy used in production is primarily sourced from hydropower, which is a completely renewable energy source.
We have a number of active projects that further support our mission. One of these projects involves sourcing camel cheese for our dog treats. By purchasing camel cheese, we are helping to support the livelihoods of camel herders in the Gobi Desert, an area of the planet that, due to climate change, is experiencing more frequent and harsher droughts. This has forced many nomadic peoples to cluster into the capital of Mongolia – Ulaanbaatar – a city that is struggling with the consequences of rising overpopulation. This is but one example of our commitment to planet and community, and it certainly helps that camel cheese is like “chocolate” for dogs! They go absolutely CRAZY for it.
Because we love the environment and we love dogs—and we’re fairly certain dogs love the environment as much as we do—we are serious about our sustainable business practices. Although our daily operations are already fairly green, we do produce some carbon emissions, mostly from shipping and transportation, and we have been committed to offsetting these emissions by supporting forest conservation projects in Latin America. These offsets help fund critical projects that protect old growth forests from deforestation, support local and indigenous communities, and conserve biodiversity.
That’s how we close the Happiness Cycle at Chews Happiness. That’s how we contribute our tiny part to nurturing Mother Earth. We invite you to make your own contribution as well.
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Chews Happiness is based in Colorado, USA, and provides handcrafted dog treats and gifts. Check out their products and their mission here.
Get in touch with Ecosphere+ to learn more about how you can incorporate natural climate solutions into your business strategy.
Photos: Chews Happiness
