Grocery chain Sainsbury’s has joined the effort in extending itself toward a greener world. It is undeniable that big businesses face a massive challenge when it comes to reducing their impact on the environment. The operations are so vast that sweeping changes can take a long time. Which means, the sooner these positive changes begin, the better!
Sainsbury’s, one of the UK’s biggest grocery chains, understands this urgency and has pledged to spend £1bn ($1.3 billion) to become a carbon-neutral business by 2040. That’s ten years sooner than the government’s target for a net-zero economy. It will invest the money over two decades to reduce emissions and tackle their environmental impact.
The supermarket chain’s 20-year program includes:
- cutting its carbon emissions
- cutting its food waste
- cutting its plastic packaging
- cutting its water usage
- increasing recycling
- promoting healthy and sustainable eating
- assuring that its operations are net positive for biodiversity
Measures it will take to execute the program include:
- boosting its renewable energy usage
- cutting down on overall energy use
- making its fridges more efficient through greater use of natural refrigerants and innovative technology
- increasing the use of low-carbon and alternative fuels by 20% among its vehicles by 2025
- cutting its use of plastic packaging in half by 2025
- working with its suppliers and requesting them to commit to reducing their carbon emissions
- piloting a deposit return scheme in five stores where customers receive a 5p coupon for every plastic bottle they recycle
Sainsbury’s chief executive, Mike Coupe, said:
Sainsbury is making this investment in order to transform the way we do business and put environmental impact at the forefront of every decision we make. We have reduced our carbon emissions by 35% over the past 15 years, despite the footprint of our business increased by over 40%. We invested £260m in over 3,000 initiatives over the last decade, including the start of our LED lighting program and refrigeration.
Environmental group Friends of the Earth greeted the move from Sainsbury’s with open arms. Mike Childs, head of policy, said:
Supermarkets have a huge influence on our personal carbon footprints, so the more they can do to embrace and encourage greener lifestyles, the better for us all. Encouraging and supporting the switch to a more plant-based diet is particularly important – eating less, but better quality, meat, and dairy would be healthier for people and the planet. The influence supermarket chains have over suppliers is also huge – they must use that to encourage better environmental standards while still ensuring a fair deal for farmers.
There are other supermarkets outlining sustainability goals, but Sainsbury’s targets are more ambitious than most of them. Among the others includes Tesco and German discount chain Aldi.
Tesco has pledged to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 and is removing shrink-wrapped multipacks of tinned food from its stores to reduce its contribution to the plastic waste crisis. Meanwhile, Aldi is buying carbon credits to offset all emissions from its 11 distribution centers and 870 UK stores. It is also switching to renewable energy and upgrading its fridges and freezers to reduce emissions, as well as reducing fuel consumption in its distribution network.
