Going Green More Complicated Than It Seems

Newswise — Wal-Mart and Greenpeace may seem unlikely bedfellows, but when it comes to the push by the retail industry to go green, old conventions are dissolving while new collaborations are being formed.

Beyond Greenpeace, Wal-Mart is now also welcoming the input of eco-friendly organizations including World Wildlife International and Conservation International as it works on a broad strategy to improve its sustainability efforts, according to its director of development, speaking at the Institute of Food Technologists annual meeting in Chicago.

"We're not looking for the same old answers," said Nancy Nagle, "We've got to let go of some of our old, preconceived notions and look for input, not just for ourselves, but to pass along to our suppliers."

Nagel described Wal-Mart's sustainability strategy that focuses on the three goals; being supplied by 100% renewable energy, creating zero waste, and selling products that conserve resources and sustain the environment.

Nagel conceded that the goals are lofty, and said the intention is to shoot as high as possible—even if Wal-Mart is forging new territory without a roadmap.

The zero waste for emissions, for instance, may not come to fruition any time soon.

"We know we're not going to get to zero, but we have an initial goal of reducing store emissions by 25 percent in seven years and to make our fleet 25 percent more efficient in three years, and we think that can realistically be accomplished," she said.

Wal-Mart is working with its suppliers to help find solutions to the variety of challenges they may face in efforts to make products more sustainable, according to Nagel.

One scenario involved responding to marketing concerns raised by a detergent manufacturer whose reformulation resulted in smaller packaging, possibly reducing its appearance on the shelf when compared against competitors larger packages.

As a solution, Wal-Mart changed aspects of its shelving where detergents are displayed.

"We wanted to encourage them to do this, so we gave a guarantee that they would get the same amount of space on the shelf as they had before," Nagel said. "We didn't want to penalize them for being efficient."

While Wal-Mart's size may make it a prime target for eco-criticism, Nagel said the retailer's enormity is perhaps its best asset for prompting large-scale change.

"Because of our size, we can help create the critical mass to make this commitment," she said.

Now in its 67th year, the IFT Annual Meeting + Food Expo is the world's largest annual scientific forum and exposition on food. Ranked among the largest U.S. conventions, the meeting delivers comprehensive, cutting-edge research and opinion from food science-, technology-, marketing- and business-leaders; online at http://IFT.org/amfe. Meetings run through Wednesday.

Founded in 1939, and with world headquarters in Chicago, IFT is a not-for-profit international scientific society with 22,000 members working in food science, technology and related professions in industry, academia and government. As the society for food science and technology, IFT brings sound science to the public discussion of food issues. For more on IFT, see http://IFT.org.