Grand Rapids, Michigan-based Meijer has been recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s GreenChill Program for having the lowest corporate-wide refrigerant emissions over the past year for the third consecutive year.
The EPA's GreenChill program is a voluntary partnership with food retailers, refrigeration system manufacturers and chemical manufacturers to reduce refrigerant emissions and decrease their impact on the ozone layer and climate change.
As an active participant in the EPA's program since 2012, the Midwest retailer focused on reducing its refrigerant leak rate and is well below the industry average of 25 percent.
"Lessening our impact on the environment through a continued commitment to reduce carbon emissions is important to us and our customers," said Vik Srinivasan, chief administrative officer for Meijer. "We've made significant progress toward our goal of reducing our absolute carbon emissions 50 percent by 2025, thanks in part to our teams' continued focus on refrigeration management through our partnership with GreenChill."
In 2022, Meijer also earned the Store Recertification Excellence Award for its store in Marysville, Ohio, achieving five consecutive years of GreenChill Store Certification.
Meijer also announced its customers diverted 10 million pounds of potential food waste through the Flashfood app, making it the first retailer nationwide to reach this milestone with Flashfood.
Through the Flashfood app, customers purchase food nearing its sell-by date, including meat, produce, seafood, deli, dairy and bakery products, at up to 50 percent off. Customers then pick up the food from the Flashfood zone located at the front of Meijer stores.
"Food is at the core of what we do, and we're always looking for ways to cut down on landfill use because it's the right thing to do for our customers and communities," said Erik Petrovskis, director of environmental compliance and sustainability at Meijer. "Our partnership with Flashfood has already grown beyond our expectations, but this record achievement has us looking forward to the program's future growth."