On Feb. 23, The Wall Street Journal reported that Walmart said its suppliers have removed 1 billion metric tons of greenhouse-gas emissions from their value chains, six years ahead of the scheduled target date.
In 2017, the organization began an initiative to encourage its suppliers to reduce their carbon footprint, aiming to avoid, reduce or sequester the 1 billion tons of emissions by 2030.
The article adds that “This week, the company said that its suppliers have achieved that goal, working on measures such as energy efficiency, packaging redesign, food-waste reduction and trucking-load optimization. The company, based in Bentonville, Ark., said that 75% of net U.S. sales in fiscal 2023 came from suppliers enlisted in the project.”
Further, “The initiative, dubbed Project Gigaton, is aimed at reducing so-called Scope 3 emissions, which are the result of a company’s supply chain and the use of its products. These emissions often represent the bulk of a company’s carbon footprint.”
Walmart’s Chief Sustainability Officer Kathleen McLaughlin, who is also president of the Walmart Foundation, said in an interview “the company didn’t request suppliers to disclose the initiative’s cost or financial impact, but that they have cited improvements such as lowered cost. Walmart doesn’t charge suppliers to participate, but offers resources and tools, she said, without disclosing any financial impact for the retail chain itself.”
According to a blog post from Walmart, the company plans to improve and expand the project as well as continue to target zero by 2040 for its operational emissions—Walmart defines this as Scope 1 from its operations and Scope 2 from the energy it uses.
The Wall Street Journal has the article.
Janette Wider | Editor-in-Chief
Janette Wider is Editor-in-Chief for Healthcare Purchasing News.
