On October 4, in a ceremony at the Food Industry Association’s Energy and Store Development Conference, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s GreenChill Program recognized 12 food retail companies and one manufacturer of advanced refrigeration systems for their exceptional achievements to reduce the use of ozone-depleting substances and/or climate-damaging refrigerants.

EPA represented Weis Markets, based in Sunbury, and The GIANT Company, based in Carlisle with the Superior Goal Achievement Award.

In addition, ALDI stores in Pennsylvania and other states were recognized for meeting GreenChill Store Certification requirements.

“Participants in the GreenChill Partnership and Store Certification Programs have been leading the industry in environmentally friendly refrigeration practices, and EPA annually honors their achievements at both the corporate and individual store certification level,” said Paul Gunning, Director of EPA’s Office of Atmospheric Protection. “These companies’ efforts show that it is possible to keep food cool while protecting our Earth’s ozone layer and climate system by setting and achieving ambitious goals year after year.”

GreenChill Partners commit to reducing refrigerant emissions and decreasing their impact on the environment.

On average, GreenChill food retailers maintain emissions rates that are approximately half the industry average, resulting in a significant benefit to the environment.

Over the past 16 years, GreenChill Partners have avoided emissions of around 599 metric tons of ozone-depleting substances and almost 110 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent.

This is roughly equivalent to the greenhouse gas emissions from consuming over 12 billion gallons of gasoline. 

For more information, visit EPA's GreenChill Program webpage.

[Posted: October 4, 2023]

10/9/2023