Earth Day 2019: How retailers are embracing sustainability

Walmart launches reusable bag campaign

For the first time ever, new reusable bags made with post-consumer recycled content will be available for sale at Walmart checkout carousels in all stores throughout the United States.

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Aldi steps up plastics reduction

The company announced that by 2025, 100% of Aldi packaging, including plastic packaging, will be reusable, recyclable or compostable. Aldi will also reduce packaging material across its entire range by at least 15%.

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Albertsons growing Open Nature eco-brand

Albertsons has added 17 compostable and Earth-friendly items to its Open Nature private brand. The new products include eco-friendly picnic wares — plates, bowls, cutlery, straws and cold and hot cups — as well as garbage bags, lawn and leaf bags, food scrap bags, bamboo facial tissue, bamboo washable rayon towels and bamboo bath tissue.

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Bringing small-batch products to New Seasons Market

The 21-store Pacific Northwest chain is partnering with The Redd to fulfill its mission to stock small-batch, locally made foods.

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H-E-B bolsters sustainable seafood policy

The San Antonio-based grocer said its updated policy augments efforts to source certified wild-caught and farmed seafood; expand traceability systems for all seafood products; prevent human rights abuses in seafood supply chains and support workers’ rights; and foster environmental and ethical integrity in its canned tuna supply.

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New York bans single-use plastic bags by 2020

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Most single-use plastic bags provided by supermarkets and other stores will be banned statewide starting March 1, 2020. The ban will require residents to pay for paper bags or reuse their own on grocery store visits.

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Hy-Vee tests grocery shopping app to reduce food waste

The Flashfood app enables consumers to browse and buy food items nearing their “best before” date at “significantly reduced” prices.

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Doing good is good business

These days it takes more than a solid business plan for companies to succeed — an increasingly large part of the equation is a company’s mission, the values and beliefs of a business that connect it to its customer base and the community at large.

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Putting the ‘community’ in PCC Community Markets

As giant supermarket chains continue to make strides in their sustainability and environmental efforts, they would be wise to take a cue from PCC Community Markets in Seattle. This 11-store community food market has been fighting the good fight since its inception as a food-buying club in Seattle in 1953.

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