Kroger Updates 2022 ESG Plan

The Kroger Co. has updated its Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) plan with the 2022 ESG Report: Nurturing Shared Values.

The plan is highlighted by Kroger’s Zero Hunger | Zero Waste initiative that the company says has directed 2.3 billion meals to communities, along with climate action, private label packaging initiatives, human and animal rights policies and more.

"We live our purpose – to feed the human spirit – through Kroger's commitments to advance positive impacts for people and our planet and create more resilient global systems," said Rodney McMullen, Kroger's Chairman and CEO. "We are proud to report that Kroger continues to make progress toward key ESG goals. I am especially proud of the Kroger team's collective effort to create communities free from hunger and food waste. Through Zero Hunger | Zero Waste, Kroger has donated billions of meals to help end hunger and millions of pounds of surplus fresh food to avoid waste. We are committed to expanding food access, affordability, and choice for all our customers."

In the updated plan, Kroger has strengthened its greenhouse gas reduction target from a 2°C climate scenario to a 1.5°C climate scenario. Kroger will also set a new Scope 3 goal for supply chain emissions reduction as part of its SBTi commitment. The company will share a detailed project roadmap for achieving the current GHG reduction goal by the end this year.

Kroger also said that it is well on its way to the ESG goal of sustainable packaging for all private label products by 2030. Internal estimates found that 40% own brand product packaging meets the company's definition of recyclable today when measured by weight.  

In addition to looking forward, Kroger shared 2021 highlights of its initiatives. In 2021, the retailer increased the average wage for hourly store associates to over $17, reduced total food waste generated in retail stores by 18.9%, sourced 16.9 million pounds of Fair Trade Certified ingredients for private label products and more.

Kroger’s updated ESG report can be found here.