Spotlight

Working towards zero food waste

After meeting our first food waste reduction goal six years ahead of schedule, 100% of our stores are now diverting potentially wasted food to its best and highest use according to our food rescue hierarchy.

people > animals > compost

Zero Food Waste Initiative

A lot of energy, water, land, resources, and work goes into producing available food. We believe food is a resource too important to be wasted, and with that in mind we launched a formal effort in 2017 to reduce food waste and measure our results, with the goal to cut food waste in half by 2025. We achieved that goal in June 2018.

As of 2023, over 93% of our unsold food is kept out of landfills, and instead goes to people, animals, and back to the soil as compost or energy with that importance.

Most of the food that isn’t sold is still perfectly edible, but just hasn’t found a shopper to bring it home with them. We work to reduce this surplus food at all levels of the supply chain, though some unsold food is inevitable. When that happens, we ensure it has the best opportunity to be put to its best and highest use.

Save-On-Foods has adopted three approaches to our food recovery efforts:

  • Prevent surplus and potentially wasted food
  • Respond to food waste reduction performance
  • Divert to best and highest use

To make this possible, Save-On-Foods has collaborated with BC-based innovative social enterprises FoodMesh and Loop Resource Program. These programs have developed entire networks and systems to match rescued, unsold food to local organizations and farms. Edible food that would have previously gone to waste now goes to local food programs and food banks. Then, if it’s not suitable for people, it’s donated to local farms to feed animals. Only if it’s truly not suitable for consumption by animals is it composted or turned into energy.

Not only can this benefit people and animals, it’s also better for the environment. Decomposition in a landfill can produce 28 times more global warming potential units than if consumed by a person!

Through the robust data that FoodMesh is able to provide, our stores have department-level insights into trends, amounts, and sources of unsold food, allowing for focused efforts and year-over-year reductions. This information also allows us to see if any retraining is needed for our team members on what can be donated and how to sort it for best and highest use.

  • 65MKilograms of CO2 emissions entering the atmosphere avoided by keeping edible food out of landfills
  • 70Mmeals provided through food rescue alone since 2016. Additionally, these donations have helped support over 3,000 charities, food banks, and farms!
  • 16%Reduction in greenhouse gas emissions since 2016 baselines, despite adding 30 new stores!

Further Reading:

Our Mission

Save-On-Foods continues to uphold our commitments to address environmental impacts where we can truly make a difference, and continuously looks to new ways to improve on our energy reduction, food waste avoidance, and circular economy initiatives. Our customers bring forward important questions and issues that tell us what’s important to our communities, and this input helps guide our efforts.

Darrell Goes Digital – Eliminating over 8M lbs of paper waste per year

In 2022 we made the decision to keep over 8 million pounds of paper waste per year out of the communities we serve by making the switch to digital-only flyers!

70M

Since 2016, Save-On-Foods has partnered with local charities to create over 70 million healthy meals

Vitacore and Save-On-Foods partner to recycle reusable bags

Reusable shopping bags have replaced single-use ones in a step towards a more sustainable Canada. Save-On-Foods locations now offer Planet Impact bins in-store to leave reusable bags to be responsibly recycled into new products, even if they’re not from our store!

Download Press Release

Call2Recycle Canada and Save-On-Foods Partner to Increase Battery Recycling

Call2Recycle Canada Inc., is announcing a new partnership with Save-On-Foods. This partnership will give Save-On-Foods customers an opportunity to have a real impact on the environment by returning end-of-life batteries to their local store.

Download Press Release

6 million Kgs

Of batteries recycled by Call2Recycle in 2023, with strong support from Save-On-Foods, leading us to be recognized once again as a Leader in Sustainability.

Circular Food Innovation Lab

Addressing food waste challenges in Vancouver

Save-On-Foods, in partnership with the City of Vancouver, Vancouver Economic Commission, and Emily Carr University were joined by many other local stakeholders along the food and agriculture value chain to explore ways to collectively address food waste to improve access, cost, and management of our most precious resource.

Learn more

8M+

pounds of paper waste kept out of our communities per year.

Reducing Waste

Decades of waste reduction

For decades we have introduced processes and products that reduce waste in our stores and operations – from being one of the first retailers in Western Canada to offer bulk foods to reducing plastic use in our extended supply chain. We look to innovative products, like reusable pallet wraps, that significantly reduce the need for plastic wrap during shipping. Our recyclable materials like cardboard and plastics are recovered from all of our stores and warehouses to be recycled.

How we’re bringing our commitments to life

  • Ocean Wise and Save-On-Foods team-up to help households take action against plastic pollution

    Every year we celebrate Plastic Free July! Whether you’re a plastic-free pro or just starting on the journey to reduce your use of unnecessary plastic, join Ocean Wise in taking the next (or first!) step to radically reduce your plastic use.

  • Advancing Energy Conservation

    Save-On-Foods became a Power Smart Partner in 2002, and since has continued to find ways to save energy in our operations.