Whole Foods Market has improved energy performance by 21% since 2010, achieving its energy savings goal as a partner in the Better Buildings Challenge two years ahead of schedule. The organic and natural foods grocer implemented a wide range of retrofit projects and an energy awareness program for store operations. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recognized Whole Foods Market for its achievement. “Congratulations to our 2022 Better Buildings Goal Achievers for reaching their ambitious energy savings goals,” said Kelly Speakes-Backman, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy at Washington D.C.-based DOE. “By saving energy and sharing their proven real-world solutions, these partners are leading the charge toward a clean-energy economy while helping other organizations learn from their success.”
Whole Foods Market is one of the market leaders partnering with DOE, and the only grocery retailer, to set portfolio-wide efficiency goals and share their approaches on the Better Buildings Solution Center. The Austin, Texas-based grocer improved energy use across 12.3 million square feet of building space and has 70 stores and facilities using supplemental power from rooftop solar installations. The company has been a leader in adopting low-Global Warming Potential refrigeration technologies. Whole Foods Market has employed tools to measure, analyze, and share the efficacy of newly designed and replicated energy efficiency and climate protection programs in new and retrofitted stores.
“At Whole Foods Market, our mission is to Nourish People and the Planet, and we strive to fulfill this mission in all aspects of our business, including the design and operation of our stores,” said Caitlin Leibert, VP of Corporate Social Responsibility at Whole Foods Market. “We’re encouraged by the progress we’ve made thus far and are committed to continuing this very important work with the U.S. Department of Energy and stakeholders across the industry to help raise the bar for energy efficiency and environmental stewardship.”
The Better Buildings Challenge is one aspect of the Better Buildings Initiative, through which DOE joins with more than 900 organizations to make commercial, public, industrial, and residential buildings more efficient. To date, Better Buildings partners have reduced more than $15 billion in energy costs, resulting in more than 150 million metric tons of prevented carbon emissions.
The first certified-organic national grocer, Whole Foods Market has more than 500 stores in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Seattle-based Amazon, which is #2 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2022 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America.
