Resource scarcity
When are we going to run out?
The human population is very dependent on natural resources in everyday life. We drive our car on gasoline made out of oil. The car is made out of steel or aluminium that is mined from the ground. The food we eat is grown on farmland that is limited. Clean drinking water is and will increasingly be very scarce in large parts of the world.
Due to the population and consumption growth the demand for resources is increasing. Since the supply is not able to keep up with demand, the prices are also increasing. Furthermore, we are very aware that non-renewable resources will not last forever. We could discuss whether it will be 10, 100 or 1000 years before, for example, the world’s oil resources are very scarce, but we can all agree that this will happen someday.
At AkzoNobel we are constantly striving to reduce the resource and energy use through our value chains. This way we will reduce our impact on the planet, but we will also realize major costs reductions. We are also investing in R&D and innovation processes, in order to find long-term solutions, such as renewable raw materials and alternative product solutions. This way we are prepared and have alternatives when conventional solutions fail or non-renewable resources run out.