CONVENIENCE RETAIL
CONVENIENCE STORES ARE MAKING PROGRESS ON FOOD WASTE REDUCTION
But sustainability efforts, especially at smaller chains, are far from complete.
MICHELINE MAYNARD, FREELANCE EDITOR
W ith the conve- nience-store sector continuing to grow, and global leaders worried about food waste, c-stores’ food-management practices are in the spotlight. But food sustain - ability remains a big challenge for the nation's 152,000 c-stores to manage. Michael Headly, a partner in the restaurants, hospitality and leisure practice at consulting firm AlixPartners, says food waste has grown as c-stores try to innovate in both grab-and-go products and fresh- made items. “A lot of what they’ve done (in foodservice) has been experimentation, and that’s led to a lot of waste,” Headly says. He sees three issues facing the major chains. “Food waste can be an operations issue; it can be a merchandising issue and it can be a business strategy issue,” he says. At some chains, sustainability has been a topic for years. Since 2019, Seven & i Holdings, the parent company of 7-Eleven stores worldwide, has pursued a food- sustainability roadmap that stretches ahead for three decades. Under the plan, called Green Challenge 2050, it wants to reduce food waste by 50% in 2030 and 75% in 2050. Japan-based Seven & i intends to increase food waste recycling to
75% within six years and achieve 100% compliance in 26 years. With 9,700 stores in the U.S., it has formed four environmental subcommittees, including one for food loss, waste reduction and organic waste recycling, and another for sustainable procurement. “We are working together with all our stakeholders to realize a rich and sustainable society,” Seven & i said in its management report in 2023. But other companies lack the structure to find solutions themselves, Headly says. “If you’re not tracking it at the store level, you might not even see it as a problem.” Some have turned to Feeding America, a non-profit network of more than 200 food banks nationwide, for help. Sheetz, which has 718 stores in the U.S., has tapped Feeding America to help overhaul its program for donating the leftover food from its stores. “When the program is rolled out company-wide, we’ll be able to donate Made-To-Go sandwiches and other ready-to-eat items, fresh fruit, eggs and bacon, dairy products, frozen dinners, packaged bakery items, packaged dry goods, and bottled drinks to those in need,” Sheetz says. There’s no word when that update will come. But since 1992, Sheetz has partnered with the organization in the Sheetz for the Kidz program, which
aims to feed youngsters in the areas where there are Sheetz stores. It says it has served more than 150,000 children through food pantries, soup kitchens and meal programs. Casey's General Stores. with nearly 2,500 locations in 16 states, is also partnering with the group, raising $500,000 since 2022 to fund 5 million meals. In February of that year, it launched a program to support 54 food banks in communities with its stores. “We strive to reduce food waste and increase food recovery to improve operational efficiencies, reduce our environmental impact and address hunger in our communities,” the company says. A Casey’s spokeswoman says the program will be updated this summer. One major challenge, says Headly, is tracking how much food is likely to go unpurchased. Regional preferences and season travel patterns mean it’s hard to make predictions. “It’s so challenging to do this across thousands of stores,” he says. He believes, however, that increasingly green-minded consumers can push for c-stores to ramp up their efforts. “It’s only a matter of time before customers demand it and companies figure out some of these operational challenges,” he says. And as some of these companies find answers, “it will be huge bragging rights to them.”
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SUSTAINABILITY OUTLOOK 2025
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