Meijer Earns EPA Excellence Award

Midwestern superstore retailer Meijer has earned a 2017 SmartWay Excellence Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for outstanding environmental performance and leadership.

The award recognizes top-performing SmartWay retail and manufacturing shipping partners that demonstrate how businesses can mitigate their carbon footprints and contribute to cleaner, healthier air, while saving on fuel costs as they move goods across the country.

"Meijer is proud to receive the prestigious recognition by SmartWay. Our distribution and logistics teams continue to make significant progress to lower emissions and reduce our carbon footprint in the markets we serve," said Tom McCall, VP of logistics at Grand Rapids, Mich.-based Meijer. "We constantly focus on improving the efficiency of our fleet to reduce idle time, emissions and impact on our neighbors, particularly in urban settings."

Meijer operates a fleet of 250 semi-trucks that collectively cover an estimated 25 million miles each year. The company is constantly working to minimize emissions from refrigerated trailers. All refrigerated units are programmed with "cycle sentry," which automatically regulates the engine as refrigeration is needed. This technology enables Meijer to see a fuel savings of nearly 80 percent, increases the life of the engine and reduces maintenance costs.

Meijer also uses three Tier 4 CARB hybrid/electric shore-powered refrigerated units at its distribution and stock dock doors to run only electronically. This reduces operating and maintenance expenses, eliminates local diesel emissions and meets local noise ordinances. These hybrid units are now the standard specification for new unit purchases.

In addition, the retailer has built a best-in-class clean diesel fleet, made focused investments in energy efficiency within its retail footprint, and established an ongoing commitment to sustainable design in new construction and renovation.

The annual SmartWay Excellence Award honors top shipping and logistics companies for superior environmental performance and additional actions to reduce freight emissions through effective collaboration, operational practices, a robust system for validating and reporting their SmartWay data, and communications and public outreach. SmartWay Excellence Awardees lead their industries in improving freight efficiency and contributing to cleaner air within their supply chains. Awardees are chosen from more than 3,500 companies and organizations participating in SmartWay.

Meijer operates 235 supercenters and grocery stores throughout Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky and Wisconsin.