Being Eco-Conscious at Grocery Outlet

Wednesday, June 30, 2010

It may surprise you to know that Grocery Outlet is on a mission to become eco-friendly. Even though our primary goal is to bring you quality products at extremely low prices, we also include sustainability and eco-responsibility in our overall strategy. Here are some things that Grocery Outlet has done in our corporate offices to reduce waste, save energy, and make our planet a better place:

1. We used to provide free bottled water for employees. We've now switched to filtered drinking water coolers and drinking glasses. We recycle the paper cups we do use.
2. We bought Duplex Printers—we encourage printing on both sides of the paper.
3. We switched to energy saving smart power strips
4. We bought energy saving dishwashers. We switched to motion lights in offices to save energy.
6. We made the change to organic, fair trade coffee and biodegradable coffee filters.
7. We provide incentives for employees to ride their bike or carpool to cut down on emissions.
8. We recycle cardboard, plastic, cans, bottles, paper, bubble wrap, and Styrofoam, as well as cartridges, staplers, and other difficult items to recycle.
9. We buy recycled copy paper and office products.
10. We switched our janitorial supplies and paper towels to more sustainable, eco-friendly products.
11. We try to make electronic copies more than paper copies.

Also, we've made sourcing organic, sustainable, and eco-friendly products for you a priority. You'll regularly see brands like Amy's Organic, Kashi, Annie's, Nature's Gate, and many more in our stores. The eco-friendly product that I'm most excited about is Bear River Valley Cereals. We're featuring these cereals in our July ad (consider this a sneak peek!). Bear River Valley cereals use 75% less packaging than other brands, and the manufacturer supports renewable wind energy. Also, all shipping cartons are made from 100% recycled product. You can learn more about Bear River Valley here.

Bear Valley

Best of all, each cereal is only 99 cents! You save up to $2 on this cereal. That's something to cheer about!

This is just one of many examples of how Grocery Outlet can help you save money and the planet. We'll keep our eyes out for more fantastic eco-bargains. Stay tuned!

Grocery Outlet Eco-Frugal Frugal Living Re-use

Comments 16

Esther 30 Jun, 01:28 PM
Thank you, I am the kind of person that wants to be informed (and reminded) of the different ways I can be eco-conscious, and this helped me very much.
Groce Out Fan 30 Jun, 06:50 PM
This is all excellent news, but most places I know don't accept used food containers (i.e. paper water cups, but also paper plates, to-go boxes, napkins, etc.) as recycling. Some places do accept them as compost. Folks should check with their local solid waste or recycling company.

P.S. It's "sneak peek", not "sneak peak". Unless you're making a pun about the image on the packaging. Don't feel bad--it's a pretty common typo nowadays.
Kelly 1 Jul, 02:03 PM
Fixed! Thanks!
Monica 2 Jul, 03:07 AM
Thank you for existing! Keep up the good work!

We can't believe how much natural/organic foods you carry.
John 2 Jul, 08:49 AM
I love and always look forward to your beautifully written blog entries. You always offer wonderful advice, tips and news updates! Thank you so much. I am a regular shopper at Grocery Outlet! It's my weekly adventure. I am delighted to read this post and know that Grocery Outlet is being more keen to exo-friendly needs and principles. Well done!!! Ps. some summer budget menu planning/recipes would be great. I love your recipe and menu planning posts with information on how to stretch food and make multiple meals throughout the week with a fixed shopping list.

God bless you well!!!
Kelly 2 Jul, 09:28 AM
Hi John! Thanks for your sweet comment! It really made my day. I'll get on that--planning some summer meals with ingredients you can buy at GO.
Recycling Dude 4 Jul, 01:56 PM
Congrats to GO for making efforts to become "greener". I think that eco-friendly packaging is a great way to increase your business.

Now if Bear River Valley can switch to compostable packaging instead of plastic (oil based) then they would really have something to talk about. The bar for "green" products has been raised recently, and I don't think most of us would mind paying a little extra to lose the plastic. Also, they should be able to say that they are 100% "renewables" powered. A statement such as "The manufacturer supports renewable wind energy..." is very weak. We need some concrete numbers here folks to "support" these statements. Have they made a financial commitment to renewable energy? If so, by how much? Have they installed any wind or solar on-site to power their manufacturing? If so, how many kilowatts?
Parvati 4 Jul, 06:25 PM
thanks for being conscious and making eco-choices. Please carry more organics!!
Tina 7 Jul, 03:42 AM
Good to know that my favorite store cares about Mother Earth! Keep up the good work. You are my favorite place to shop!
Tanya 7 Jul, 06:44 AM
Practices such as you describe could bring about a new way to live for your employees. Our habits can be formed by the way we live. Thank you for setting the tone for your company. Another reason that I can love shopping Gtriocery Outlet first;not just "green talk" but green practice, too. Thank you!!!
Carol 7 Jul, 08:50 AM
I love and appreciate Grocery Outlet soooo much and now even more so! With everything that's happening to our food sources and production and processing of it, especially the GMO connection, it's great to hear of your openness and follow through in. We all need to keep being educated and not stick our heads in the polluted sand!....Thank you very much!! I'm hoping to see more and more organic produce!!! It's also nice to see a company that cares about their employees....How refreshing!
Sheldon 7 Jul, 08:56 AM
I am very proud to hear that the store I shop at has the same values as me, and am excited to see more organic, sustainable, and eco-friendly products with low prices.
Incentives to go green for employees are also a great benefit for all.
It shows that the employees are treated well and that goes a long way.
Thank you Grocery Outlet.
Kelly 7 Jul, 11:33 AM
@Recycling Dude:

Go check out their website. I believe they subsidize their own carbon emissions through buying wind energy. But the best source of information is, of course, the company itself.
Patrick 16 Jul, 11:22 AM
The BEST part is that it is GREAT ceral. I brought some, tried it, and went back to buy 4 more.

Since this is more than I will consume for several months, The packaging was a plus. It is quite "stout" "and strong" and it appears to be "bug resistant". :)

And I like that they are small bags and not jumbo size as once they are opened, they can be accessable to "bugs".
Emily 27 Jul, 10:06 AM
I would not include a price in your description of the cereal, because I just spent $2.49 a bag at my grocery store for it. It is really good cereal, but the zip closures broke on all 3 bags.
Kelly 23 Aug, 09:44 AM
@Emily: which grocery store? One of ours? If so, I'm sorry you were unhappy. Let me know.