The Hepburn Distillery is providing a great example of the circular economy in operation with the Hepburn Shire Council publicising it as an example as it promotes a special toolkit for businesses.

The distillery’s process waste is being delivered to local farms as pig food.

Guests of a local wedding provider then get to enjoy both pork from the pig farm and Hepburn Distillery vodka on their special day.

The distillery is one of three case studies being highlighted in the council’s Circular Hepburn Toolkit for Businesses and Beyond.

Further information is available via the link https://ow.ly/Ykur50Ry7wx

The Hepburn Shire Council has launched its Circular Hepburn Toolkit, a guide to help local businesses reduce costs, reduce their impact on the environment and boost the circular economy. 

“The circular economy tackles climate change and other global challenges like biodiversity loss, waste, and pollution, and reconnects people to each other and the natural systems,” Hepburn mayor Cr Brian Hood says. 

“Practices like picking up goods for someone else, repurposing, sharing, refurbishing and repairing, are all ways that local businesses are contributing to a circular economy.

The Circular Hepburn Toolkit embraces these ideas and more and is designed for businesses of any size or sector.  

“Our aim in creating the toolkit is to help business operators to understand more about what the circular economy is and learn how their business and partners can benefit from becoming more ‘circular’,” said Cr Hood. 

The outcome of improved practices would be an economy, community and environment that are healthier, stronger and more resilient. 

The council recently launched the toolkit at the Sustainable Hepburn Day Out held on Saturday 16 March in Daylesford. 

“We had local business operators and community members representing circular economy leadership across a range of sectors; including food and beverage, housing, fashion and more at Sustainable Hepburn Day Out,” said Cr Hood who launched the kit.  

“There really are some extraordinary businesses in our Shire leading in the circular economy area, including designing buildings for disassembly (Inquire Invent), catering for events with food from farms that would otherwise be thrown away (Happy Scraps), and offering Australia’s only 100% traceable, biodegradable and compostable underwear and t-shirts (Farm to Hanger),” he said. 

“We want to encourage other businesses to see how they can benefit from embracing a circular economy.” 

The toolkit comprises a booklet, a card deck of circular economy strategies, and an accompanying webpage, which together:  

• Explain the concept of circular economy and how it is being developed in Hepburn Shire 
• Detail inspiring local circular economy case studies 
• Bring to life 14 strategies for bringing “circularity” into your business
• Links to circular economy tools, resources and stories from around the world. 

Hepburn Shire businesses are invited to download the toolkit from the council’s website.

“We’re encouraging local business operators to trial these resources and share their experience,” said Cr Hood.   

Printed copies of the toolkit are also available from the council’s Circular Economy Officer Jodi Newcombe.

The Hepburn Shire Council is encouraging local business operators to attend a circular economy themed business breakfast on Thursday 30 November at Creswick Neighbourhood Centre.

The event takes place from 8am to 9.30am and is being hosted by Hepburn Shire Council and Creswick Business and Tourism.  

The circular economy is a system where materials never become waste and nature is regenerated. In a circular economy, products and materials are kept in circulation through processes like maintenance, reuse, repair, refurbishment, remanufacture, recycling and composting. 

Mayor, Cr Brian Hood, said that Council is committed to developing and promoting the circular economy to diversify our local economy and support sustainability goals. 

“Given the economic and climate change challenges we face today, expanding circular economy practices is a practical step we can all take to build a healthier, stronger and more resilient economy, community and environment,” said Cr Hood.  

“This work is underpinned by our four-year Council Plan and Sustainable Hepburn Strategy, which was developed in partnership with the community,” he said. 

Council’s Circular Economy Officer will provide an overview of the circular economy and introduce the Hepburn Shire Circular Economy Business Toolkit, currently in its final stages of development. Attendees will be invited to be amongst the first to trial the toolkit when it is released later this year. 

The toolkit is full of strategies that businesses can deploy to improve their bottom line through designing out waste, keeping materials in circulation and regenerating natural systems. Over time the toolkit will expand to include many more local examples of circular economy businesses and practices.  

Designed for businesses of any size or sector, the toolkit will help businesses understand more about what the circular economy is, learn about circular strategies and how businesses and value chain partners can benefit from becoming more ‘circular’. 

“With the help of state and federal governments, we are designing local systems of production, procurement and service delivery that minimise waste and pollution and build economic, social and ecological resilience,” said Cr Hood. 

Taylor Hay, local entrepreneur, will be demonstrating an Injection Moulding machine which he has designed and has been selling to schools across Australia to turn plastic waste into useful objects. Taylor is working alongside Precious Plastic, a movement which originated in the Netherlands and has inspired innovation across the globe.  

Attendees will hear stories of other local Circular Economy champions and projects and will leave with a better understanding of what a transition to a circular economy might look like in Hepburn Shire.  

This is a free, fully catered event. Registrations are essential and can be made via Circular Economy Business

The council will also be hosting a networking event for business owners, operators and industries from across the Shire to celebrate the achievements of the year and build future connections. It will be held from 5.30pm on Tuesday 28 November.

A survey of the local business community in Hepburn Shire suggests a high readiness to implement circular economy strategies, the local council says.

The survey was part of the Hepburn Circular Economy Activation project and results are now available for download on Participate Hepburn.

The work was co-funded by Council and Hepburn Energy and identifies areas of strength and areas where there are gaps in supporting the activation of a circular economy in the Hepburn Shire.

The council recently employed a circular economy officer, Jodi Newcombe, who is an economist and strategist with 25 years’ experience in the sustainability sector. She has previously worked as Climate Change Coordinator for the neighbouring Mount Alexander Shire. 

Ms Newcombe is keen to learn what local businesses and organisations hope to see as part of the council’s circular economy programming, with locals invited to contribute their thoughts in this three-minute survey.