Ray’s Food Place Rewards Shoppers Who Reuse Bags

Ray's Food Place last week launched an environmental rewards program to promote the use of reusable bags at its stores.

The Brookings, Ore.-based grocer is working with EcoUnit and Catalina Marketing on the initiative. “This … innovative program rewards shoppers with one EcoUnit credit for each reusable bag used at participating stores,” explained Robin Kovach, director of sustainability and environmental impact for Ray’s parent, C&K Market, Inc. “Shoppers can collect EcoUnit credits and redeem them for their choice of local environmental causes, including tree planting and river conservation.”

Ray's selected the EcoUnit environmental rewards program to spur its customers to benefit local environmental causes. Each time a shopper participates, he or she helps the environment in two important ways -- by forgoing the use of plastic and paper bags and by earning EcoUnit credits, which are redeemed to support the local environment.

Ray's uses Catalina Marketing's proprietary technology to print a unique code for each shopper with a reusable bag. The shopper then enters the code at Gorays.com to register his or her credits. Each participating shopper receives an account on the EcoUnit system where he or she can manage credits and redeem them for a range of environmental rewards.

“We all care about the local environment, and it’s a priority for C&K Market and Ray’s Food Place to reward our customers when they do the right thing by using their reusable bags,” noted Greg Sandeno, VP and COO of CK Market.

The program will benefit important local environmental causes in central and southern Oregon, and is part of Ray’s overall sustainability strategy that seeks to reduce energy consumption and waste.

C&K Market operates Ray’s Food Place full-service grocery stores, Shop Smart, and Price Less Foods stores offering everyday low pricing in a warehouse format.