“Caring for the planet and its people is the right thing to do!” Cindi Bigelow Third Generation CEO Bigelow Tea

Timeline

1. Satisfied Consumers:At Bigelow, the consumer is number one. Therefore, it is essential that we provide a product that satisfies all of their expectations. Our primary focus is to produce teas that offer a unique and truly gratifying experience. In this endeavor, we will not allow price to compromise our products. Good flavor and product freshness are the prime considerations in the creation of our teas.

2. Strong Relationships:With our distributors, retailers, and suppliers we continually work to build and maintain strong business relationships. We realize that it is through excellent communication and mutual respect that we grow and prosper together.

Bigelow Tea Mission Statement

Founded in 1945 by Ruth Campbell Bigelow, R.C. Bigelow, Inc. is dedicated to being a premier packer of truly fine quality teas. As a family owned and operated business, our company is guided by these four principles:

3. Satisfied Employees:Bigelow is an equal opportunity employer dedicated to providing our employees with a challenging and positive environment in which to work. Recognizing that each and every employee plays a pivotal role in the success of our company, we seek to attract and retain outstanding individuals who will take pride in all aspects of their areas of responsibility, and understand the importance of cooperation among their fellow employees. We strive to motivate and satisfy our employees as well as promote individuals on merit and contribution.

Bigelow Tea Mission Statement

4. Good Corporate Citizen:Our company has been, and always will be, based upon strong ethical business practices and is dedicated to only the highest standard of behavior in all areas. We feel an obligation to support the local communities where we reside so as to build a good working relationship as well as to contribute to worthy local and national causes. Furthermore, as a good corporate citizen, we remain committed to protecting the environment by continually striving to improve the environmental responsiveness of our packaging.

Supported New Hampshire's Statewide Program of Action to Conserve our

Environment (SPACE) by preserving land in New Hampshire for over 50 years

Purchased the Charleston Tea Plantation in May of 2003 to save the 127 acres

from future real estate development. The plantation is America's only tea garden and is the home of our

American Classic Tea.

No pesticides (herbicides, fungicides or insecticides)are used on the plantation

2003

2006

Installed window laminates

to reduce cooling load in summer months

Utilized Economizers in

HVAC units

Began utilizing recycled pallets

Retrofitted LED bulbs in all exit signs

Installed automatic towel dispensers to

reduce the amount of paper used

Implemented corrugated recycling

program

Installed duct heaters to heat portions of production floors to

eliminate use of portable heaters

Converted to more energy conscience LCD monitors

from CRT’s

2007

880 Solar panels installed, providing 10 to 15%

of our energy

Installed motion sensors throughout facility,

warehouse, conference rooms, office space &

remote locations

Upgraded all fluorescent light from

T12 bulbs to T8

Replaced all incandescent lights with LED bulbs

Purchased a hybrid facility

vehicle

All bulbs are now recycled

Installed an energy efficient air compressor unit & air storage tanks to make

compressed air during off peak hours for use during

peak hours

Installed automatic low flow flushers in

all plant toilets

Converted to green cleaning products obtained from the Imus

Environmental Center

Installed track LED lighting in cafeteria

2008

Installed machine shop switch

-Programmable thermostats on all warehouse heaters

-Hot water heater timers on all hot water heaters

-Low flow water Restrictors

-Occupancy sensors for HVAC system in

low use rooms

-Timers on all dust covers

-Energy efficient Air conditioners

Installed

Replaced cafeteria appliances with energy efficient models

Installed energy efficient dishwasher,

electronic sensing faucets, adjustable

toilet flappers & shut off unused sprinkler heads for water conservation

in Boise facility

Primary overwrap packaging supplier expands its new “Green facility”

 

2009

2010

Implemented our “No Idle” policy designed to eliminate wasted fuel and harmful emissions

from our delivery trucks

All biodegradable materials are now

segregated at point of use and composted,

resulting in an average of two tons of

compost per month

• A farm in New Milford picks up our compost for further

use

Started an annual employee electronic

recycling drive

Worked with State of CT to provide sidewalk to rear parking lot to enable employees to commute via mass

transit

Shredded five tons of used packaging

material to be used as package filler in our direct

marketing business

Implemented single stream

recycling bins in the cafeteria

Eliminated 300,000 feet of shrink wrap

usage by switching to plastic bands

Implemented recycling programs

for -Metal based

materials-Electronic equipment

Switched all cafeteria paper

supplies to compostable corn starch products

2011

2012

Replaced scanners, fax & copy

machines with multi-function

printers• Ink toner

cartridges are sent for recycling or donated to charity

A grease collection & recycling unit for our foodservice vendor to recycle cooking oil into

biodiesel fuel

Boise facility recognized by DEQ for pollution prevention achievements

Installed a hand washing station on production floor

to reduce paper towel usage

Recycling kits for used fluorescent lamps, ballasts &

batteries

Foil overwrap recycling for tea

bags consumed in our facilities for

other uses

Implemented

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2013

Achieved Zero Waste to Landfill manufacturer status

for all 3 facilities

• 97% of all waste is now diverted

• We diligently track our weights and have created

an internal auditing process

Created a community vegetable garden using some of our

composted soil

• 200 lbs of vegetables donated to Bridgeport Rescue Mission’s Food pantry

Became a member of the

• Supporting a tea industry

that is socially just and

environmentally sustainable.

Recognized by Garick for our commitment to the

environment & sustainability

-Biodegradable materials are turned into compost

Started recycling 100% of all raw tea containers

Boise purchased & modified a shredding

separation machine

Installed waterless urinals in plant

restrooms in Fairfield and Boise saving 40,000 gallons of

water per year

Began converting outside lights to LED based lights-saving 71,000 kw annually

Boise & Louisville conduct an electronics recycling drive

Boise Dumpster diving audit identified plastic corners from inbound shipments can be repurposed for banding outbound cases

 

2014

• Expanding our community garden with an extra bed to increase

production & donations to the local food bank

• Planting a flower garden along the chain link fence to beautify the surroundings and improve the

habitat for our local bees

Facility Refresh in Fairfield will include the use of local and

recycled building materials for ceiling tiles and flooring. Other initiatives include LED lighting,

ceiling tiles, flooring, hand dryers, motion generated

faucets & flush valves

Increasing # of waterless urinals

Charleston Tea Plantation’s First Flush Festival uses bio-degradable

corn cups to serve iced tea to festival attendees.

Louisville looking to earn Kentucky EPA recognition