Wegmans will eliminate plastic bag use companywide by the end of 2022, with a goal to shift customers to reusable bags, the best option to solve the environmental challenge of single-use grocery bags.
Sprouts to Hold First Private Brand Sustainability Vendor Summit
Sprouts Farmers Market will host its first Our Brands focused Sustainability Vendor Summit June 21-24 as part of the company’s commitment to offer responsibly grown and sourced food to customers.
The virtual event, hosted in partnership with ECRM and RangeMe, will allow Sprouts to discover new suppliers to support the continued expansion of Sprouts Branded items in departments including grocery, produce, frozen, deli, bulk foods, meat and seafood, and vitamins and supplements.
“At Sprouts, we believe that doing good extends beyond selling healthy products,” said Jac Ross, VP of Our Brands. “Our long-term growth strategy is rooted in sustainability efforts that improve our business while caring for our customers, team members, local communities and planet. Sprouts Sustainability Vendor Summit will help advance our dedication to expand our sustainable selection of Sprouts Branded products in our over 380 stores across the country and beyond.”
Starting now through April 25, Sprouts encourages private brand suppliers and manufacturers who align with its commitment to ensure ethically source ingredients and sustainable packaging and who prioritize and support improved animal welfare to sign up at www.rangeme.com/sproutssustainabilitysummit.
Learn more about Sprouts’ ESG initiatives at sprouts.com/sustainability.
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DJ Khaled’s Another Wing Drops Plant-Based LikeWings
DJ Khaled’s Another Wing unveiled LikeWings, plant-based additions to its U.S. menu in partnership with LikeMeat, a LIVEKINDLY Collective brand. The collaboration marks LikeMeat’s first ghost kitchen partnership. LikeWings are available for order through the Another Wing storefront on UberEats, DoorDash, GrubHub and Postmates in the United States.
LikeWings come smothered in Another Wing’s signature flavors including: You Loyal! Lemon Pepper, Honey! Honey! Hot Honey Sriracha and They Don’t Want You To Win TRUFFALO. To celebrate the launch, Another Wing will co-host a pop-up wing dispensary, aptly named Another Wing Dispensary, in partnership with the Flowery in Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood on April 20 between 3 p.m. and 9 p.m.
“This LikeWings collaboration is an incredible opportunity for people who don’t eat meat to enjoy the incredible flavors of Another Wing. This collab combines the flavors of Another Wing with the plant power of LikeMeat,” said DJ Khaled. “Let’s win more with LikeWings.”
“We’re flying high with this new partnership and are beyond excited for Another Wings’ fans to try these awesome LikeWings the next time the munchies strike,” says Michelle Collette, head of foodservice for LikeMeat. “This is LikeMeat’s first flight into the ghost kitchen world, and we’re in it to wing it.”
Described as “the world’s most ambitious restaurant launch,” Another Wing debuted in November across over 150 locations and three continents at the same time on the REEF Kitchens platform. The concept has since expanded to Asia.
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Wegmans to End Plastic Bag Use by End of 2022
“We understand shoppers are accustomed to receiving plastic bags at checkout and losing that option requires a significant change. We are here to help our customers with this transition as we focus on doing what’s right for the environment,” said Jason Wadsworth, Wegmans category merchant for packaging, energy, and sustainability. “As we’ve encountered plastic bag legislation in numerous markets, we’ve learned there’s more we can do, and a bigger impact we can make, together with our customers.”
Wegmans will incentivize the use of reusable bags by charging five cents per paper bag, an approach that has proven successful in New York and other markets. In stores where the company has already eliminated plastic bags, on average, paper bags are used for 20-25 percent of transactions, while the remaining 75-80 percent use reusable bags, or no bag at all. By eliminating plastic bags from the rest of our stores and focusing on transitioning our customers to reusable bags, we’re preventing approximately 345,000,000 single-use bags from going into circulation in a year’s time.
The amount collected from the paper-bag charge will be donated to each store’s local food bank and United Way. In 2021, the more than $1.7 million Wegmans collected and donated from the bag charge was used to increase access to wholesome food and address the most critical needs of our communities.
Wegmans’ elimination of single-use bags is coupled with its commitment to reduce single-use plastics. Wegmans has committed to reducing its in-store plastic packaging made from fossil fuels, along with other single-use plastics, by 10 million pounds by 2024.
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