BENTONVILLE, Ark.– Walmart announced that suppliers have reported reducing more than 20 million metric tons (MMT) of greenhouse gas emissions in the global value chain, as part of the company’s Project Gigaton initiative. Walmart launched Project Gigaton last April, seeking to work with suppliers to reduce emissions from the company’s value chain by a gigaton, or one billion metric tons, by 2030. The emissions reduction progress was shared at Walmart’s annual Sustainability Milestone Summit, where expanded commitments on solar and wind power, as well as electric vehicle (EV) charging stations, were also discussed.
“In its first year, Project Gigaton has helped to inspire action that has led to the avoidance of millions of metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions and has expanded into an international campaign that includes the participation of several hundred suppliers,” said Kathleen McLaughlin, senior vice president and chief sustainability officer for Walmart. “The early success of Project Gigaton parallels ongoing progress in our operational efforts that seek to double our U.S. renewable energy use and expand our customer electric vehicle charging hubs to retail outlets across more than 30 states.”
With the recent expansion of Project Gigaton in China and the U.K., more than 400 suppliers with operations in more than 30 countries have joined the program. Suppliers can commit to reductions in any of six pillars that include energy, agriculture, waste, packaging, deforestation and product use. Approximately 85 percent of the Project Gigaton emissions reductions reported by suppliers have focused their efforts on the energy and product use pillars, with projects devoted to areas such as renewable energy investments and the development of more efficient products.
“This annual milestone marks a pivot point for Walmart and 400 of its suppliers to share solutions and lessons learned. The next step is to deepen commitments that unlock the potential of this platform,” said Carter Roberts, president and CEO, World Wildlife Fund (WWF). “We need collaborative initiatives like Project Gigaton and We Are Still In. With sufficient goals and results they can help define our country’s ability to build a sustainable future. And they also shape the world’s understanding of our commitment to solving climate change.”
“With Project Gigaton, Walmart is raising the bar for innovation and collaboration across its supply chain,” said Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense Fund. “In Project Gigaton’s second year, we hope to see even more Walmart suppliers setting targets based in science, ensuring that business, people and nature thrive.”
A highlight from the summit was a commitment made by Project Gigaton participant, Procter & Gamble (P&G), to cut 50 MMT of emissions from its operations and value chain by 2030. P&G will achieve this through inviting customers to join the Tide #QuickColdPledge, switching to quick and cold laundry cycles to use less water, 80 percent less energy and create 40 percent fewer emissions in every load, as well as committing to source 100 percent renewable electricity in its North American operations by 2020.
“Walmart’s Gigaton goal is ambitious and demonstrates the impact we can have when we collaborate on a common goal,” said Carolyn Tastad, Group President of North America, P&G. “At P&G, we share Walmart’s commitment to making measurable progress and a positive impact across our brands, supply chain, society and our employees.”
Another key announcement made at the summit is that Walmart plans to more than double its EV charging station sites with the addition of several hundred charging stalls across its operations in 34 states. This expansion will bring Walmart’s total number of charging units to well over 1,000 when complete, making Walmart one of the nation’s leading EV charging station hosts and creating a national grid of electric vehicle charging availability at hundreds of Walmart stores and Sam’s Club locations.
Walmart’s EV charging station expansion will provide customers with added convenience as several of the new units will feature super-fast chargers that can charge a car in between 10 to 30 minutes. This initiative is part of Walmart’s continuing evolution to help busy families and create a more resourceful and enjoyable one stop retail experience that allows customers to charge their vehicles as they shop.
Expanding Renewable Energy Use
Walmart also discussed recent progress in renewable energy that will move it closer toward its 2025 goal of being supplied globally with 50 percent renewable energy.
As a result of several new solar and wind projects, Walmart plans to more than double the amount of renewable energy it uses in the U.S. and increase the percentage of global electricity needs supplied by renewable sources above the current 28 percent.
The new initiatives include expansion of on-site solar energy installments. Walmart, already the leading company in the U.S. for number of locations utilizing on-site solar energy, plans to add an additional 130 sites which will bring its total to approximately 500 locations across 22 U.S. states and Puerto Rico, surpassing its 2014 goal to double its onsite solar use by 2020.
Walmart recently reached an agreement to acquire renewable energy that will enable the building of two new large-scale wind farms developed by Geronimo Energy and Engie. The 1.26 billion kWh produced annually from this arrangement will be equivalent to the majority of the electricity needed to power Walmart stores, Sam’s Clubs and distribution centers across seven Midwestern states.
These new wind energy deals come only weeks after the retailer announced that most of the renewable energy certificates (RECs) generated from a new solar farm in Alabama will supply 150 million kWh each year to the retailer, covering 40 percent of the company’s electricity needs in the Alabama Power service area.
Additionally, earlier this month Walmart announced that it had successfully collaborated with Google and Georgia Power on an initiative that will result in the retailer obtaining 182 million kWh of additional renewable energy annually. Once the new Georgia Power arrangement is operational, approximately 34 percent of Walmart’s power demand for its retail locations served by Georgia Power will come from the renewable sources in the program.
Cumulatively, these new solar and wind projects will provide over 1.6 billion kWh of renewable energy annually to Walmart, equivalent to the average annual electricity use of over 139,000 homes and thus doubling Walmart’s renewable energy use in the U.S. and moving it closer towards its 2025 goal of being supplied with 50 percent renewable energy.
To view the Sustainability Milestone Summit replay, please visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2Fba190_JQ
To receive more information on Project Gigaton and Walmart’s sustainability efforts, please visit: https://www.walmartsustainabilityhub.com/
About Walmart
Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world save money and live better – anytime and anywhere – in retail stores, online, and through their mobile devices. Each week, nearly 270 million customers and members visit our more than 11,700 stores under 65 banners in 28 countries and eCommerce websites. With fiscal year 2018 revenue of $500.3 billion, Walmart employs approximately 2.3 million associates worldwide. Walmart continues to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity. Additional information about Walmart can be found by visiting http://corporate.walmart.com, on Facebook at http://facebook.com/walmart and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/walmart.
WALMART SUSTAINABILITY MILESTONE MEETING
ADDITIONAL QUOTES FOR MEDIA USE
BENTONVILLE, Ark., April 18, 2018
Ingrid De Ryck, VP, Procurement and Sustainability, Anheuser-Busch:
“More and more, consumers are choosing to engage with companies that are doing good in the world. Industry leaders like Anheuser-Busch and Walmart have a responsibility to set an example and be good stewards of the environment. It’s not just the right thing to do, it’s good for business. We applaud Walmart for its commitment to sustainability through Project Gigaton and look forward to working together to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”
Anh Marella, Marketing Director, Avery Dennison:
"Transforming our company, supply chain and industry requires collaboration and innovation. At Avery Dennison, we're proud to offer products and solutions made with fewer inputs, and with certified and renewable materials. Our CleanFlake™ technology featured at Project Gigaton, is a water-based adhesive, which cleanly separates during the PET Plastic recycling process enabling true bottle-to-bottle recycling."
Joe Walicki, President, Power Solutions, Johnson Controls:
“We applaud Walmart’s commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and we’re proud to be part of this important initiative,” said Walicki. “Johnson Controls is dedicated to using less energy and resources through both our closed-loop recycling system and our smart battery technologies, which power one in three vehicles around the world.”
Euan Murray, CEO, The Sustainability Consortium:
“The Sustainability Consortium is proud to continue to support Walmart during year two of Project Gigaton, a critical initiative that brings together top suppliers with the companies and organizations to create leaders in the movement to reduce our collective carbon footprint. We look forward to continuing our work as a measurement partner on Project Gigaton and the Walmart Sustainability Index in the coming year,” said Euan Murray, TSC Chief Executive.
Tom Hayes, President and CEO, Tyson Foods:
"As the largest U.S. food company, we’re putting sustainability at the center of everything we’re doing. We have the opportunity – and responsibility – to make a big difference, but we can’t do it alone,” said Tyson Foods President and CEO Tom Hayes. “We’re proud to team up with Walmart and are working with farmers, ranchers and others to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions 30 percent by 2030 and support improved environmental practices on two million acres of cropland by 2020. Solving complex challenges isn’t easy – but working together, we’re making progress every day.”
Luiz Amaral, Global Executive Manager, World Resources Institute:
“An estimated 70 percent of tropical deforestation is driven by the production of palm oil, soy, beef, cocoa and other agricultural commodities. To effectively tackle greenhouse gas emissions, companies must address deforestation in their supply chains,” said Luiz Amaral, Global Manager of GFW Pro, World Resources Institute. “But supply chains can be complex and difficult to track, so the first step is measuring where sourcing poses risks. Technology – like WRI’s Global Forest Watch – can help any company involved with Project Gigaton gain insights into its supply chain to make better decisions and track progress toward its goals.”
Source: Walmart
