The Corn Broom Story

I was watching one of those home improvement shows on cable yesterday. During a shopping expedition to furnish a log cabin, the TV Host came across a vendor who crafted corn brooms from scratch.

"How long does it take you to create a corn broom?" was the first question.

"Five months and 45 minutes." came the reply. "Five months to grow the corn and 45 minutes to attach the handle."

A small country vendor thought of his broom making processes in the same way that some of the most sophisticated manufacturers think about theirs - from the generation of raw materials through finished goods.

Many of us might have just answered "45 minutes".

But thinking in terms of the overall process is what will help us generate "green goods" - with environmentally low (or no) impact. It will force realistic accounting of all the energy and environmental impact of the end to end process. It also helps identify process "waste".

For many of us, it's a whole new way of thinking.