Southeastern Grocers Shares ESG Progress With 2022 Report
Southeastern Grocers (SEG), Store Brands’ 2022 Retailer of the Year, has released its 2022 Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) report, detailing the company’s progress in the past year.
The parent company of Winn-Dixie, Fresco y Más and Harveys Supermarket detailed six United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in the report, addressing hunger, health, education, inequalities, responsible consumption and production and ocean conservation.
As part of its ESG progress, SEG said it is taking steps to use sustainable packaging for its private label products by eliminating the use of polystyrene, and ensuring that all packaging is either reusable, recyclable or industrially compostable. SEG added that it is working to include an average of 30% post-consumer recycled material in all its own brand packaging.
As part of its collaboration with supplier partners, SEG is working to define clear objectives that improve animal and pollinator welfare. In 2022, SEG committed to the guiding principles of The Five Freedoms of Animal Welfare to further enhance its animal welfare policy, and outlined policies to protect the planet’s pollinator populations.
“At Southeastern Grocers, we understand the importance of making informed purchasing decisions that have a positive impact on the environment,” said Anthony Hucker, SEG president and CEO. “We are committed to being responsible stewards of our planet's resources, and in 2022, we made significant strides in fulfilling our environmental commitments and implementing sustainable improvements. We believe working together with our customers, supplier partners and communities is key to achieving our environmental goals as we continue leading the way in promoting positive change for the health of our planet and making a lasting impact on future generations."
In 2022, SEG, together with its SEG Gives Foundation nonprofit, donated more than $700,000 and 14 million pounds of food to help alleviate hunger, as well as $2.55 million to support crucial emergency assistance, disaster preparedness and relief programs both locally in the wake of Hurricane Ian, and overseas in support of the citizens of Ukraine.
The grocer also donated more than $1.25 million to Folds of Honor, providing more than 250 educational scholarships to the children and spouses of fallen and disabled military service members, giving nearly $2 million in support to various military, health and local community initiatives.
SEG also touted its support of environmental causes, including donating to local organizations to help elevate their environmental efforts, partnering with Florida State Parks to host design contests with local schools aimed at reducing the use of single-use plastic bags and implementing volunteer cleanup days for store teams.
The full ESG report can be found here. SEG operates stores across Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi.