The objective of the proposed research is to demonstrate how management accountants can adapt familiar analytical methods to physical (nonfinancial) performance indicators in the emerging field of sustainability decision support, planning, and control. A review of the environmental management accounting literature indicates that there is little, if any, evidence that methodologies such as activity based analyses and flexible budgeting have been applied to physical measures of key environmental and social variables. We will conduct a case study of Bacardi Limited?s innovative application of the principles of activity based flexible budgeting to produce efficiency metrics for physical sustainability measurements. The research team will examine the advantages and disadvantages of Bacardi?s efficiency metrics from the viewpoints of managers across three dimensions: level of management, business unit, and geography/culture. The research team also will look at how Bacardi?s performance improved on the sustainability metrics and investigate potential reasons for variations in performance identified across organizational units. The findings of the proposed study will enable management accountants to play a more significant role in the advancement of sustainability initiatives.

The economics of producing methane by the selected digester system and optimized methanol system will be evaluated to direct final system design rather than relying on just technical considerations. The long term goal is the integration of an on-farm, low-cost, low-tech digester with a methanol production system that can be economically justified, protects environmental quality and utilizes valuable waste constituents.