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Meijer was founded by Hendrik Meijer in 1934 as a supermarket chain in Greenville, Michigan, US. However, the story evolves it’s being one of the key contributors to solar energy farms as well as wind energy firms.
One of the major support was seen from Schneider Electric,
“As one of the largest Midwest supermarket chains, Meijer has made commitments to reduce their carbon emissions by 2025, and it is an honor for Schneider Electric to advise them on adding renewable energy to their portfolio,” said Steve Wilhite, President of Schneider Electric’s Sustainability Business.
He also mentions: “It’s an honor to work with Meijer, who is acting urgently to reduce their carbon emissions by 2025,”
The headquarter is located at Walker, Michigan, US. The company’s revenue recorded in 2020 was US$ 19.59 billion.
Solar Energy
The goal of Meijer is to reduce 50% of carbon emissions by 2025. And it is just not a fictitious aim. The company signed its partnership to increase the solar energy project and scale it up with Duke Energy Sustainable Solutions.
Duke Energy Sustainable Solutions (DESS) is a nonregulated commercial brand of Duke Energy and is headquartered in Charlotte, NCC. It is a Fortune 150 company. It is a leader in a sustainable energy solution that helps in reducing power costs, lower emissions, and increases resiliency.
The company provides support in wind, solar, and resilient backup power to manage energy services for over 1,000 projects in the U.S.
“The goals of at least a 50 percent carbon reduction by 2030 and net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.”
The retailer signed the purchase agreement for the first 15 years of operation. The project took place in Navarro County, Texas on 1,800 acres of land.
Meijer President & CEO Rick Keyes said. “At Meijer, we are motivated to make an impact in the local communities we serve, and beyond, by doing our part and taking the necessary steps to reduce carbon emissions.”
“Meijer has made significant progress over the years to integrate sustainability into our daily operations. We’re committed to these ongoing efforts and a project like this brings us closer to our industry-leading sustainability goals.”
Approximately 200,000-megawatt hours of energy will be generated by the Pisgah Ridge Solar project for Meijer in the 1st year. Clean energy is accountable for reducing CO2 emissions by more than 103,000 metric tons. It likes removing 20,000 vehicles from the road.
As per Chris Fallon, President of Duke Energy Sustainable Solutions, “Renewable energy assets like the Pisgah Ridge Solar project contribute to a cleaner, stronger economy and help create a more diverse energy infrastructure.
“We’re pleased to be working with Meijer to create jobs, strengthen the local economy, and generate cleaner energy, while also helping them address their carbon reduction goal.”
Wind Energy
The company is not just about solar energy but expanding its sustainable goals through a wind energy center by signing an agreement with a subsidiary of NextEra Energy Resources, LLC.
NextEra Energy is a world leader in generating renewable energy from wind, sun, and battery storage. The project is named Lacy Creek Wind Energy Center in Texas.
As Meijer President & CEO Rick Keyes said, “As a company, we believe it’s more important now than ever to do our part to better the environment, which is where our ambitious sustainability goal originated.
While the Lacy Creek Wind Energy Center is one of the multiple sustainability initiatives Meijer has underway, we’re pleased it has contributed to the accelerated progress in meeting our sustainability goal by 2025.
The impact these environmental sustainability initiatives will make in the coming years go beyond improving daily operations at our Meijer stores; they align with our values and our continued focus on being a good steward of the environment.”
The delivery of 800,000 MWh of renewable electricity through the Lacy Creek Wind Energy Center.
As per Matt Handel, Senior Vice President of Development for NextEra Energy Resources, “We are pleased to work with Meijer in alignment with their ambitious sustainability goals. This project also creates economic stimulus in Glasscock and Sterling counties in Texas, providing good jobs and additional tax revenue.”
NextEra Energy Resources is a wholesale electricity supplier by NextEra Energy. It was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Juno Beach, Florida, USA. The CEO is John W. Ketchum, 2019.
The revenue of NextEra Energy is recorded as $18 billion in 2020.
Some other projects Meijer is involved such as recycling plastic gardening containers from any retailers. Donating $1M to protect the Great lakes. Hosting the 1st Sustainability supplier Summit.
Partnering with Flashfood app to reduce food waste.
Erik Petrovskis, director of environmental compliance and sustainability at Meijer.
“Minimizing food waste is a priority for us at Meijer, and we’re constantly looking for ways to cut down on landfill use and the production of greenhouse gases,”
“Flashfood has been an exciting addition to our stores, and I’m happy to see that the program is so effective in benefiting not just the environment, but also our customers.”
In my opinion, it’s just an inspiring story of Meijer from a super chain store that started in the darkest timeline to collaborating on many sustainable projects including solar, wind, and other activities. Even though the company filed for bankruptcy during the pandemic, it was able to come up due to its sheer dedication.
Source:- Progressivegrocer