“Makes economic sense”: Mount Zero Olives on its journey to sustainability

Throughout December, Mount Zero Olives is flat-out, working hard to provide hospitality venues and consumers with important ingredients for festive snack platters.  

The Victorian food producer has built a reputation over the past three decades as a go-to supplier for olives, olive oils and fancy condiments. 

But beyond the Christmas rush, the family-owned business is also chipping away at a longer-term goal: investing as much as it can to boost its sustainability credentials. 

The company’s general manager Richard Seymour says sustainable practices have been embedded in Mount Zero’s identity ever since his parents launched the brand in 1993. 

“We are really trying to reduce our footprint as much as we can. Every time we have a decision to make around packaging or energy, [we are] trying to make the most appropriate decision,” he says. 

The business, which partners with a range of farmers across Victoria and has a warehouse in Melbourne’s west, has big ambitions for energy efficiency. 

“I would love to be self-sustainable in terms of energy use [at our warehouse]. That would mean getting more solar panels,” Seymour says. 

“In three to five years, I imagine that all our vehicles will be fully electric. Then we will start to work with some of our supply partners as well, to encourage them to come along on the journey.” 

Since purchasing a warehouse in 2018, Mount Zero has made several investments to boost the efficiency of its operations, including spending around $50,000 on solar panels. The business has also built a new ventilation system and is working on gradually replacing its delivery fleet with electric vehicles. 

Along the way, the company has taken advantage of a range of incentives, including clean energy finance loans from ANZ. 

ANZ has been partnering with the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) for the past six years to drive SME investment in the transition to net zero emissions. This has involved offering customers a discounted rate on loans for spending initiatives that will lower carbon emissions.  

On Wednesday, the bank revealed it would be extending the partnership for a seventh year and increasing the discount on offer for clean energy finance loans. Small business customers will now be offered a 0.8% discount off their asset finance rate for eligible assets, up from the previous 0.5% discount. 

Seymour says loan programs like this “help tick things along” and smooth the process of investing in energy-efficient projects.

The number of clean energy grants and loan programs like ANZ’s have grown over the past few years as governments and lenders acknowledge both the importance of investing in the energy transition and the reality of rising business costs. 

Research from the Council of Small Business Organisations Australia (COSBOA) suggests half of Australia’s smaller operators have not yet taken steps to invest in the energy transition. COSBOA says 63% of businesses cite cost as the biggest barrier to investment. 

Rather than being overwhelmed by the costs, Seymour says Mount Zero Olives has found the process of investing in sustainability quite straightforward. 

“I actually think it’s been really simple – it’s more of an attitude [for us],” he says. 

He believes if SMEs are intentional about their spending and planning, they can gradually invest in more energy-efficient options. 

“There is no way I could afford to come in and change everything today, nor would that be a particularly sustainable thing to be doing. We are just retiring old things and are trying to replace them with new electric or sustainable options.” 

As well as aligning with the company’s values, this intentional approach is also helping the balance sheet. 

“Thankfully, we are finding that it makes economic sense as well. Our fuel bill has gone down massively, for example,” Seymour says. 

“We’re just doing things in a timely manner and in a way that I feel comfortable.”

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