EPA names 2023 GreenChill Program honorees

A number of major retailers have been honored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) GreenChill Program for achievements in reducing emissions from supermarket refrigeration systems.

Twelve grocery store retailers were honored in a ceremony at the FMI – The Food Industry Association’s Energy and Store Development Conference on Oct. 4. According to the EPA, GreenChill Partners commit to reducing refrigerant emissions and decreasing their impact on the environment. On average, GreenChill food retailers maintain emissions rates that are approximately half the industry average, resulting in a significant benefit to the environment. 

Over the past 16 years, GreenChill Partners have avoided emissions of around 599 metric tons of ozone-depleting substances and almost 110 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, according to the EPA.

“Participants in the GreenChill Partnership and Store Certification Programs have been leading the industry in environmentally friendly refrigeration practices, and EPA annually honors their achievements at both the corporate and individual store certification level,” said Paul Gunning, director of EPA’s Office of Atmospheric Protection. “These companies’ efforts show that it is possible to keep food cool while protecting our Earth’s ozone layer and climate system by setting and achieving ambitious goals year after year.”

This year, EPA recognized the following GreenChill Partner companies: 

Best Emissions Rate 

• Ashland Food Co-Op (Ashland, Ore.) 
• Meijer (Grand Rapids, Mich.) 

Most Improved Emissions Rate 

• Brookshire Grocery Company (Tyler, Texas) 

Superior Goal Achievement  

• Ashland Food Co-Op (Ashland, Ore.) 
• Brookshire Grocery Company (Tyler, Texas)

• Food Lion (Salisbury, N.C.) 
• The GIANT Company (Carlisle, Pa.) 
• Hannaford (Scarborough, Maine) 
• King Kullen (Bethpage, N.Y.) 
• Weis Markets (Sunbury, Pa.) 

Exceptional Goal Achievement 

• Ashland Food Co-Op (Ashland, Ore.) 
• Food Lion (Salisbury, N.C.) 

"Lessening our impact on the environment through a continued commitment to reduce carbon emissions is important to us and our customers," said Vik Srinivasan, chief administrative officer for Meijer. "We've made significant progress toward our goal of reducing our absolute carbon emissions 50% by 2025, thanks in part to our teams' continued focus on refrigeration management through our partnership with GreenChill."

GreenChill’s Store Certification Program recognized stores for meeting strict performance criteria including refrigeration systems with minimal potential impacts on the ozone layer and climate system. This year’s GreenChill Store Certification recognitions honor: 

Store Leadership 

• Kwik Trip in La Crosse, Wis., is being honored as the first convenience store to receive a GreenChill Certification.  

Store Certification Excellence  

• ALDI (Batavia, Ill.) earned recognition for certifying 628 GreenChill Certified Stores over the past year, more stores than any supermarket chain has previously achieved, all of which were at the highest Platinum-Level Certification. 
• Hillphoenix (Conyers, Ga.) achieved this recognition for the 11th consecutive year as the commercial systems manufacturer with the most systems installed in GreenChill Certified Stores in the last year.  

Store Recertification Excellence 

• ALDI – A total of 109 locations across California, Connecticut, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia and Wisconsin achieved GreenChill Store Certification for five consecutive years. 
• Hannaford – The Turner, Maine, store achieved GreenChill Store Certification for 10 consecutive years. 
• Meijer – The Marysville, Ohio, store achieved GreenChill Store Certification for five consecutive years. 
• Publix Super Markets – Five locations in Alabama, North Carolina, and South Carolina achieved five-year recertifications.  
• Target – Two stores in Florida and Illinois achieved GreenChill Store Certification for five consecutive years. 
• Weis Markets – The Danville, Pennsylvania, store achieved GreenChill Store Certification for five consecutive years. 

“Our commitment to reducing our carbon footprint in the towns and cities we serve remains a top priority,” said Matt Yates, VP of brand strategy at Food Lion. “Our neighbors are counting on us, and the continued recognition by GreenChill reaffirms that we are delivering on our promise to reduce our environmental impact and continuing to deliver on our sustainability goals year after year.”