Giant Food and Divert process 30.8 million pounds of wasted food

Giant Food, a greater Washington, D.C., regional grocery chain, and Divert Inc., an impact technology company on a mission to “Protect the Value of Food,” say they have processed more than 30.8 million pounds of wasted food in the first year of their collaboration, mitigating nearly 1,400 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions.

"We recognize our responsibility as a leader in the grocery space to make a positive impact on the environment and tackle waste reduction," Diane Hicks, senior vice president of operations for Giant Food, said in a news release. "We're proud of the success of our collaboration with Divert thus far and look forward to continuing our work together and expanding our efforts toward a healthier planet."

In June 2022, Divert launched a wasted food recycling program with Giant to reduce the amount of organic waste going to landfill. Giant's stores mark down, repurpose or donate unsold and still edible food to local food banks whenever possible. For the food that cannot be repurposed or donated, Divert is able to recycle it and recoup its value by processing the wasted food into renewable energy, the release said.

The collaboration has expanded to include all 165 stores under the Giant banner across Maryland, Virginia, Delaware and Washington, D.C., processing on average 500 pounds of wasted food each day per store, the release said. 

"Wasted food is a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and can cost the average grocery store about $40,000 in lost profit daily," said Ryan Begin, Divert CEO and co-founder, said in the release. "Giant Food shares our commitment to tackling these issues through wasted food prevention and food donations that benefit our environment, communities and, ultimately, retailers' bottom lines. Through our ongoing collaboration with Ahold Delhaize USA and Giant Food, true sustainability leaders in the retail industry, we are eager to accelerate our impact together in the coming years."

Giant and Divert say they intend to expand the partnership in the coming year to further increase diversion and donation efforts for Giant's divisions. By leveraging Divert's growing U.S. infrastructure footprint, expertise and actionable data, Giant is poised to be able to sell more and donate more to feed people in need, the release said.

Founded in 2007, Divert says it creates advanced technologies and sustainable infrastructure to eliminate wasted food, driving social and environmental impact. The company provides an end-to-end solution that prevents waste by maximizing the freshness of food, recovers edible food to serve communities in need, and converts wasted food into renewable energy. The company works with five Fortune 100 companies and nearly 5,400 retail stores across the U.S., helping food retailers to reach their sustainability goals.