In Lezhë there is a manufacturing company that is the only one of its kind in the country and region, and we visited it this weekend as part of our center’s focus on environmental issues, particularly waste management.
AZ Group, which consists of 3 companies (INCA, Cheer Chews, and AZ Rendering) produces according to a closed circuit with 0 waste through respective production departments; production of natural casing for meat by-products, pet chew treats (reward foods for pets, dogs), and food additives in livestock for higher animal health performance (animal protein and fat). Since 2015, AZ Group has applied the principles of circular economy, meaning that animal waste collected from over 20 slaughterhouses in Albania, Kosovo, and Montenegro is converted from waste that used to end up in rivers or buried in landfills by these businesses, accompanied by elimination costs, into a reusable product with added value.
During the visit, our young people were accompanied by Drini, General Coordinator of AZ Group, who explained the Green philosophy of the processing cycle with a focus on reducing negative environmental impact, a different model of doing business in Albania with awareness of necessary adaptations to climate change in the world at its heart. The AZ Group team also includes chemists with scientific degrees who control quality before, during, and after production and measure potential pollutant components in the air at all times through specific equipment and technologies. Drini also told us about specific episodes where advancement from one company to three has been accompanied by incidents that brought dissatisfaction to neighborhood residents in 2020, as well as their successful efforts to isolate them.
Unfortunately, over 90% of AZ Group products are exported to different continents, especially to EU countries, countries that benefit from lower costs of quality production with completely natural origin coming from our country. On the other hand, import rates in Albania for similar products hurt the pockets of Albanian buyers, who come with added costs because production takes place elsewhere.
Our visit enriches the understanding of operators in the country, especially locally, who apply principles of sustainable development through circular economy models. We thank the AZ Group representatives who welcomed our study visit by answering and informing about all our questions. We believe that this information helps the young people involved to build skills of understanding and reflecting on the topic of waste management in the country.
Emilia, 15 years old
“Yesterday I was part of the group that visited “AZ GROUP” and I found the way they worked and the function this industry performed very interesting. I think it is a great help for the environment and mainly animal waste. Until yesterday I didn’t know the function of that industry they represented and I liked that I visited it and got more informed about it (despite the smell 😊).”
Drita, 18 years old
“From my perspective with the hearsay of others (citizens) it was quite different, there was very good organization for the treatment of animal waste. Since I had heard that ‘the animal waste factory dumps unnecessary waste into sewers,’ in fact I didn’t find that I saw waste to be thrown into any sewer since we saw how all possible waste was processed. It was a beautiful experience and we got a lot of new information.”
