BENTONVILLE, AR - New innovations and partnerships are fueling operational efficiency and reducing food waste at Walmart and Sam’s Club stores. A new program called Zero Depack removes expired food—which is destined for the waste stream—from its packaging.

“Every Walmart facility has a part to play in operating more sustainably by making meaningful choices that increase efficiencies, reduce costs, and improve the experiences for our associates and customers,” RJ Zanes, Vice President of Facility Services for Walmart U.S., wrote in an announcement. “For our customers, sustainability comes to life through the services and products we offer, while our associates experience it through our improved ways of working. As an operator for almost 25 years, I've seen how integrating more sustainable practices across our operations can drive this and help infuse a sense of pride among our associates.”

Located in the back of the store, the new technology and simplified processes aid associates in more efficiently “de-packaging” food waste. The program aims to create cleaner waste streams, happier associates, and a host of potential sustainability opportunities.

To support the program, Walmart is partnering with Denali to install de-packaging technology. Denali's experience and expertise made it an ideal choice to help launch the program in more than 1,400 Walmart stores and Sam's Clubs as of July 2024, the announcement stated.

“At each of these locations, the associates’ role in sustainability has become more efficient: They just toss the item in the receptacle, and Denali’s technology separates the food from its packaging material with impressive accuracy,” Zanes commented. “The company says the new machines can separate as much as 97 percent of all trash from organic food waste. This means our associates will spend less time supporting the recycling process and more time doing what they’re best at—helping our customers and members.”

For more from the announcement, click here. And keep reading ANUK for more retail updates like this.