Waste flows targeted under new ISO standard

The ISO 14051:2011 standard for environmental management and material flow cost accounting (MFCA) provides a general framework under which an organisation can track and quantify material flows and stocks as well as evaluate the costs associated with those flows.

MFCA is applicable to any business that uses materials and energy, regardless of its products, services, size, structure, location, and existing management and accounting systems.

It can also be extended to other organisations in the supply chain, both upstream and downstream, helping to develop an integrated approach to improving waste generation in the supply chain.

Professor Katsuhiko Kokubu was instrumental in developing the standard and said: “Many organiszations are unaware of the full extent of the cost of their material losses because this data is often difficult to extract from conventional information, accounting and environmental management systems.

MFCA produces such precise and clear data that it can motivate managers to enhance material productivity and significantly reduce unnecessary waste far more effectively than through conventional means.”

Maxine Perella