Albertsons Companies Receives EPA's Safer Choice Partner of the Year Award

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has named Albertsons Companies (Albertsons) the winner of its Safer Choice Partner of the Year Award for the company's commitment to increasing awareness of the EPA's Safer Choice Program for sustainable products.

The Safer Choice Partner of the Year Award recognizes businesses and organizations that advance the goal of chemical safety through exemplary participation in or promotion of the Safer Choice Program. Albertsons was recognized in the Retailer category and displays the Safer Choice logo on its Bright Green line of earth-friendlier private-label products as well as promotes the Safer Choice Program in stores, advertising and online messaging.

"It is an honor to receive this recognition from the EPA for our commitment to the Safer Choice Program and for selling products that are safer for families, communities and the environment," says Jonathan Mayes, senior vice president of corporate social responsibility, public affairs, government relations and philanthropy.

The Safer Choice Program, formerly known as the Design for the Environment (DfE) Safer Product Labeling Program, was developed in 1997 and draws upon chemical and environmental expertise from across the EPA. Safer Choice uses the technical tools and expertise of the EPA's New Chemicals Program to evaluate the environmental and human health impacts of every chemical ingredient in a product, allowing only the safest ingredients in labeled products. As a voluntary partnership program, Safer Choice brings all interested parties together to advance sustainability in chemical products. More than 2,000 products currently qualify to carry the Safer Choice label.

Albertsons' Bright Green Glass & Window Cleaner and Bright Green Rinse Aid, sold in stores nationwide, are the first of the company's Bright Green line of sustainable homecare and paper products to display the Safer Choice label. More Bright Green products will be added to the program in coming months in addition to other national brand Safer Choice products.   

"Safer Choice commends Albertsons Companies for its prominent use of the Safer Choice label on its private-label products and its continued efforts to expand its offering of Safer Choice-labeled products to consumers," the EPA wrote in the award announcement.

Introduced in 2008, the Bright Green line includes cleaning products made with non-toxic and biodegradable ingredients, paper products made from at least 50 percent recycled content, and compact fluorescent light bulbs. All Bright Green products have been evaluated by a third-party agency which analyzes the product's life cycle and ensures that the benefits are not accompanied by hidden negative environmental impacts.

The product line is a small part of Albertsons' far-reaching commitment to sustainability and minimizing its impact on the planet. The company is also working on waste reduction initiatives for all of its facilities, including 30 distribution centers and 21 manufacturing plants. In 2015, the facilities and stores recycled more than 22 million tons of soft plastic. Water- and emissions-reduction programs are helping to further reduce the company's environmental footprint. In addition, Albertsons has committed to sourcing Certified Sustainable Palm Oil (CSPO) for use in its private-label products, with nearly 3.3 million pounds of CSPO sourced in 2015 and an expected 4.8 million sourced in 2016.