Cargill, Room & Board provide foam education
By Clint Engel -- Furniture Today, November 9, 2009
Edina, Minn. — Near a display of the clean and casual furniture sold at Room & Board's flagship store here was something that didn't seem to fit.
It was a display of empty gallon milk and juice jugs suspended in rows from the ceiling by what looks like fishing line. Beside it is a sign that says this represents the amount of petroleum that could be saved with the purchase of 700 sofas with cushions made using Cargill's BiOH soy-based foam.
"There should be 70" jugs up there, said Ruth Sauvageau, one of the students from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design responsible for the exhibit. But a few fell off during the installation.
Cargill, the college and Room & Board, all based in Minneapolis, partnered for the weekend consumer educational event called "Experience Soy Style: Be in the Knoh!" It made the point, as a poster said, about "small choices that add up to a large environmental impact."
Room & Board drew about 450 people to the Edina store on a Saturday, about a third more than usual, said Store Manager Preston Long.
At a series of exhibit stations in the store, the MCAD students showed the cycle of soybeans as they are used in bio-foam, playing a part in reducing petroleum consumption.
Cargill, a giant producer and marketer of agricultural products and other goods, held a contest at MCAD, challenging students to tell the company's "soybean-to-sofa" story in a compelling way.
The winners designed and installed the Room & Board exhibit and got a $5,000 cash prize for their efforts.
Cargill began research on what would become its BiOH polyols ingredient for soybean foam-based cushions and mattresses in 2003 and has been selling it to the industry since 2005, said Jessica Koster, marketing manager for the BiOH division.
Eight of the industry's Top 10 foam producers use BiOH polyols to make some of their product. The majority of upholstery on Room & Board's floor from its key suppliers — McCreary Modern, Precedent, American Leather and Shenandoah — uses a percentage of the soy-based foam, said Bruce Champeau, the retailer's president.
Cargill's Koster said the company hopes the Room & Board event inspires other retailers that carry upholstery with soy foam to host similar events for education and traffic-building purposes. Cargill will share some of what it picked up at the Edina event, she said.
Cargill is donating the equivalent of 2% of Room & Board's sales for the weekend to Tree Trust, a Minneapolis based nonprofit that helps plant trees in blighted neighborhoods. In addition, it will purchase carbon offsets based on its estimated carbon footprint for the event.
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