Smithfield Foods has a new goal to halve overall food loss and waste in its U.S. company-owned operations by 2030. The new commitment aligns with various resource conservation and waste reduction initiatives the company has underway in its operations, including efforts to reduce overall waste sent to landfills by 75 percent and achieve zero-waste-to-landfill certification at three-quarters of its U.S. facilities by 2025.
"For years, Smithfield has spearheaded impactful programs to proactively minimize waste and reduce carbon emissions. Simultaneously, we've taken meaningful action to fight food insecurity in our communities," said Stewart Leeth, chief sustainability officer for Smithfield Foods, in a statement. "Our new food loss and waste goal furthers both of these objectives and underscores our longstanding commitment to produce wholesome, safe, and affordable food in a responsible way.”
With the implementation of its new food loss and waste target, Smithfield joins the USDA and EPA’s U.S. Food Loss and Waste 2030 Champions list of private businesses and organizations that have publicly committed to reducing food loss and waste.
Existing champions include leaders from across the food chain such as Amazon, Aramark, Campbell Soup Company, Hilton, Kroger, PepsiCo, Unilever, Walmart, Walt Disney World Resort, and Wegmans Food Markets.
Additionally, Smithfield has accepted an invitation to the 10x20x30 initiative, which brings together more than 10 of the world's largest food retailers and providers to engage at least 20 suppliers to halve food loss and waste by 2030. The company is also a member of the Farm Powered Strategic Alliance, an initiative by Vanguard Renewables, Unilever, Starbucks, and Dairy Farmers of America that aims to avoid or eliminate food waste first and repurpose what can't be eliminated into renewable energy via farm-based anaerobic digesters.
Since 2008, the company has donated hundreds of millions of protein servings across the U.S. through its Helping Hungry Homes hunger-relief initiative and has pledged to donate an additional 100 million servings by 2025.
Related: Fairtrade America Reveals Top 2022 Consumer Trends; Albertsons Completes First Zero-Emission Grocery Delivery.