U.S. Food Waste Pact Welcomes Amazon Fresh as Signatory

The U.S. Food Waste Pact, a national voluntary agreement for businesses throughout the U.S. food system to commit to reducing food loss and waste, announced today that Amazon Fresh has joined as a retail signatory. The company becomes the sixth major U.S. retailer to sign onto the initiative. Building on existing efforts to reduce food loss and waste throughout its operations, Amazon Fresh’s commitment to the U.S. Food Waste Pact’s pre-competitive model will also benefit the industry through waste data sharing and best practices.

According to ReFED, a U.S. Food Waste Pact nonprofit resource partner, 38% of food produced in the United States goes uneaten or unsold, and the majority of this becomes food waste, going to destinations like landfill, incineration, or down the drain. This roughly 78 million tons of wasted food represents nearly 145 billion meals and is worth $428 billion annually. Food waste is also responsible for 6.1% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, and reducing it has been identified as a top solution to slowing down climate change. Amazon Fresh joins 13 food businesses currently in the U.S. Food Waste Pact—including retailers like Walmart, Inc., Whole Foods Market, Raley’s, ALDI USA, and Ahold Delhaize USA—who recognize the environmental, economic, and social benefits of food waste reduction and have committed to action.

Launched last fall at COP28 in Dubai, the U.S. Food Waste Pact is a national agreement that helps food businesses accelerate progress toward their waste reduction goals under the “Target, Measure, Act” framework. Businesses that join the U.S. Food Waste Pact measure and report food waste data to the Pact on a yearly basis and have the opportunity to participate in pre-competitive working groups and intervention projects that test, implement, and scale food waste solutions.

“We’re excited for Amazon Fresh to join the U.S. Food Waste Pact,” said Jackie Suggitt, Director of Capital, Innovation & Engagement at ReFED. “Their unique and robust experience in e-commerce adds real value to our ongoing work in the retail space, and we look forward to seeing how that experience complements the retail peers they’ll be working with. Their addition will be crucial in continuing the acceleration of food waste reduction work in the retail space.”

“Food waste reduction is central to our purpose as a retailer and our overall sustainability strategy,” said Claire Peters, VP of Worldwide Amazon Fresh. “Our team is energized to accelerate progress to Amazon’s national food waste goal: reducing food waste by 50% across our U.S. operations by 2030. Joining the U.S. Food Waste Pact is an exciting opportunity to support that goal while also collaborating with other organizations to make an impact on food waste reduction.”

Led by ReFED and nonprofit resource partner WWF, with additional advisement from nonprofit WRAP, the U.S. Food Waste Pact offers a number of benefits to signatories:

● Return on Investment – Food waste reduction programs around the world have shown proven significant return on investment for all types of food businesses;

● Data Insights – Aggregated anonymous reporting from all signatories enables businesses to measure their progress, identify priority areas of action, and benchmark against competitors; and

● Industry Collaboration – Pre-competitive working groups open to all signatories offer opportunities for businesses to learn from each other’s successes; discuss solutions to challenges; and engage with government leaders through special policy roundtable discussions.

Current U.S. Food Waste Pact signatories now include Amazon Fresh, Ahold Delhaize USA, ALDI US, Aramark, Bob’s Red Mill, Chick-fil-A, Inc., Compass Group USA, Del Monte Fresh Produce Company, Lamb Weston, Inc., Sodexo USA, Raley’s, Walmart Inc., and Whole Foods Market.

For more information about Amazon Fresh and their commitment to sustainability, visit www.amazon.com/fresh/sustainability.

For more information about the U.S. Food Waste Pact, visit http://usfoodwastepact.org/.

Media Contact:

• Jeff Costantino, ReFED, [email protected]