Procter & Gamble Co. (P&G) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have formed an agreement to develop sustainability, recycling and zero waste tools for manufacturing and supply chains.

The Cincinnati-based consumer products company signed a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the EPA’s National Risk Management Research Laboratory (NRMRL) to develop tools to optimize sustainability improvements in manufacturing facilities and their related supply chains, the organizations said in a news release.

The initiative addresses the goals of P&G’s sustainability vision: using 100 percent renewable materials or recyclable material for all its products and packaging; sending zero consumer or manufacturing waste to landfills; powering its plants with 100-percent renewable energy; and designing products that maximize resource conservation.

To meet those types of goals, the EPA has developed a comprehensive list of sustainability metrics and performance indicators that can be used to quantify sustainability in manufacturing and supply chains.  Meanwhile, P&G has a range of manufacturing operations and supply chains that can be leveraged to optimize those metrics to guide choices.

The work under the CRADA will use P&G's manufacturing and supply chain knowledge with the EPA's work on metrics to develop a modeling and assessment tool to assess future product design, material sourcing and manufacturing options.

P&G will develop this framework based on metrics associated with its tissue and towel products.

The CRADA is a five-year accord.