Maybe you’ve got a compost bin. Maybe you opt for riding your bike whenever possible. Maybe tossing packaging into your recycling has become so second nature it’s almost a reflex. But as you go about the small steps in your day you’ve committed to in order to support the planet, it’s hard to see the bigger picture. How do these actions add
up at scale? And how are major companies—who are poised to create
even bigger impact—doing their part?
To answer that, we turned to Carlos Guzman, senior manager of sustainability, business acceleration at Walmart. “Walmart believes
that we must go beyond sustainability as it is understood and
practiced today,” he says. “We can do more. That’s why we’re
pursuing regeneration: so that we can help people live better and
restore and replenish our planet.”
In other words, the company encourages practices and suppliers that aren’t just working to halt harm done to the environment, but seek to help heal it, too. “As part of our new journey toward regeneration, we
are committed to shaping efforts that help protect, restore, or more sustainably manage at least 50 million acres of land and 1 million square miles of ocean by 2030 along with the Walmart Foundation,” Guzman says. One way that’s playing out? Partnering with sustainability game-changers like Plenty, an indoor vertical-farming innovator, and Westrock Coffee, a climate-conscious coffee supplier.
And the difference will soon affect Walmart’s own private-brand products. “We have committed to sourcing at least 20 commodities more sustainably by 2025, including seafood, palm oil, coffee, and tea; transitioning to 100 percent recyclable, reusable, or industrially compostable private-brand packaging by 2025, and reducing our overall plastic footprint by 15 percent by 2025,” says Guzman.
The bottom line: Supporting brands that align with your values can have big ripple effects when brands truly commit to a more sustainable future, from the supply chain to the shelf. Check out how your regular Walmart run is doing just that—by the numbers—below.
Sustainability
by the Numbers
574
Okay—that’s a big number. “574 million metric tons of anything is hard to conceptualize,” Guzman admits. “Through Project Gigaton™, Walmart and its suppliers are engaged in efforts that aim to reduce or avoid one gigaton of emissions (equivalent to the emissions from 217 million average passenger vehicles driven for one year!) by providing our suppliers with a platform that allows them to not only report on their emissions, but also guides them in setting SMART goals toward reducing emissions in their supply chain.”
million metric tons of emissions reduced or avoided
If you thought the above was a big deal, hold up a minute: Walmart
is actually upping the ante by setting an ambitious goal to achieve zero operational emissions by 2040. “To get there, we are striving to make additional energy efficiency updates to our stores, clubs, DCs, and offices, source and harvest enough renewable energy to power our facilities, and transition our transportation fleet to be fully electric,” explains Guzman. “Given our scale, these changes could potentially accelerate the development and scaling of the kind of innovative, new technology we need as a global economy to build a more sustainable future.”
emissions by 2040 without carbon offsets
Zero
For a little more color on how Walmart is setting out to do the above, consider this: In 2020, an estimated 36 percent of the company’s global electricity needs were supplied by renewable energy sources like wind and solar (that’s up from 29 percent in 2019).
powered by
renewable sources
36%
Another way Walmart is supporting its emissions goals? “We're planning to electrify our entire fleet, including long-haul tracks
in the U.S. and Canada, by 2040,” says Guzman. “We nearly doubled our truck fleet's efficiency between 2005 and 2015.”
In other words, double efficiency means lower emissions and a reduced carbon footprint of getting all those packages—whether they’re to your door, or your closest Walmart store.
the truck fleet efficiency between 2005 and 2015
Double
The world produces 400 million tons of plastic waste every year, according to the UN Environmental Program. That’s why it’s so important for major retailers like Walmart to double down on alternative and planet-friendly packaging. “In 2020, we increased the percentage of our global private-brand packaging that is recyclable, reusable, or industrially compostable to an estimated 59 percent of all packaging, putting us closer to our goal of 100 percent by 2025,” says Guzman. The goal? Reducing the brand’s overall virgin plastic footprint by 15 percent by the same year.
“Small changes do pay off in the long-term,” says Guzman about the collective actions we all can take. “Whether it be through the number of trees planted, acres of land and square miles of ocean preserved, or emissions reduced, small changes over an extended period can make a large impact.” And it’s impact you can count.
recyclable, reusable, or compostable packaging
59%
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Okay—that’s a big number. “574 million metric tons of anything is hard to conceptualize,” Guzman admits. “Through Project Gigaton™, Walmart and its suppliers are engaged in efforts that aim to reduce or avoid one gigaton of emissions (equivalent to the emissions from 217 million average passenger vehicles driven for one year!) by providing our suppliers with a platform that allows them to not only report on their emissions, but also guides them in setting SMART goals toward reducing emissions in their supply chain.”
million metric tons of emissions reduced or avoided
574
If you thought the above was a big deal, hold up a minute: Walmart is actually upping the ante by setting an ambitious goal to achieve zero operational emissions by 2040. “To get there, we are striving to make additional energy efficiency updates to our stores, clubs, DCs, and offices, source and harvest enough renewable energy to power our facilities, and transition our transportation fleet to be fully electric,” explains Guzman. “Given our scale, these changes could potentially accelerate the development and scaling of the kind of innovative, new technology we need as a global economy to build a more sustainable future.”
emissions by 2040 without carbon offsets
Zero
For a little more color on how Walmart is setting out to do the above, consider this: In 2020, an estimated 36 percent of the company’s global electricity needs were supplied by renewable energy sources like wind and solar (that’s up from 29 percent in 2019).
powered by renewable sources
36%