SuperValu, part of Ireland's Musgrave Group, has announced it has invested €7.9 million in sustainability initiatives across its stores during the past six months.
Of this €7.9 million, some €4.1 million was drawn down from a major sustainability fund announced by Musgrave in June 2022 while an additional €3.8 million of spend has been matched by independent SuperValu retailers.
Net Zero Carbon By 2040
This fund is part of the company’s commitment to achieve net zero carbon by 2040. Through the fund, stores can avail of funding for LED lighting, refrigeration and freezer upgrades, electronic shelf edge labels (eSELs), solar panels, and electric delivery vans.
Over the past six months alone, SuperValu retailers have installed 5,322 solar panels, saving enough energy to power 435 homes annually. In addition, SuperValu retailers have now saved 182,000 sheets of paper with the installation of eSELs in 2022. Many other stores upgraded their refrigeration, freezers and lighting using the sustainability fund.
The Musgrave Sustainability Fund
The Musgrave Sustainability Fund launched in June 2022 and runs up until the end of 2023. It provides a share of €25 million investment in SuperValu stores across the island of Ireland. So far, 77 SuperValu stores in the Republic of Ireland have availed of the fund.
"Our retailers have been very enthusiastic about the fund, and many have big plans for 2023. SuperValu’s sustainability strategy sets out the company’s ambition of working with retail partners, suppliers, and customers to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2040," said the program manager of the Musgrave Sustainability Fund, Daniel Murphy.
"This is the kind of action and achievement that we were hoping for when we launched our Sustainability Fund. This is made possible by taking real sustainable action in areas like energy efficiency, lighting, and packaging to name a few. SuperValu have an exceptional network of retail partners, made up of SMEs and local entrepreneurs who are passionate about their communities and sustainability," he concluded.
© 2023 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Robert McHugh. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
