BENTONVILLE, Ark.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Walmart is strengthening its sustainable chemistry policy for consumable products, reaffirming the company’s work to increase transparency, advance improved product formulations, and offer a larger sustainable product selection for customers.
As part of the policy expansion, Walmart aims to reduce its consumables chemical footprint for Walmart and Sam’s Clubs U.S. stores by 10 percent by 2022, becoming the first U.S. retailer to set a time bound reduction goal. Consumables products include items like household cleaners, cosmetics and skincare items, and infant products, among others. The goal applies to chemicals defined by the Walmart Priority Chemicals List in its revised commitment.
“We know our customers are interested in what goes into products and how they are made. It’s important for them, and we are advocating for them by encouraging innovation and transparency into that process,” said Zach Freeze, senior director of strategic initiatives for sustainability at Walmart. “Our strengthened commitment provides more clarity on our expectations for suppliers in working towards enhanced product formulations and setting concrete benchmarks to check progress along the way.”
Last month, Walmart became the first retailer to participate in the Chemical Footprint Project survey, and publicly reports its progress annually through the Global Responsibility Report and Sustainability Hub. To date, the retailer’s suppliers have removed 96 percent of high priority chemicals by volume weight from the consumables products sold in Walmart U.S. stores, up from 95 percent last year.
Walmart’s work in sustainable chemistry ladders up to its aspirational goal to sell products that sustain people and natural resources. This work was recently recognized by Fortune’s Change the World Ranking, as the company was listed as number seven of 50 companies that are making social benefit part of their core business.
“Walmart has set an industry precedent for targeting and measuring reductions of chemicals of concern in its products,” said Boma Brown-West, senior manager at the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). “Walmart demonstrates the Five Pillars of Leadership on safer chemicals and encourages the pursuit of safer products across the supply chain.”
The updates to Walmart’s commitment move beyond Walmart’s measures already in place to promote transparency with clear ingredient labeling and to encourage informed substitution with chemicals of concern by reformulating products customers use in their everyday lives, while maintaining the affordability they expect.
“Like Walmart, we know that today’s consumers want more information to help them make informed choices,” said Jack McAneny, director of sustainability at Procter & Gamble Co. (P&G). “That’s why we’ve recently expanded our transparency commitment to include fragrance ingredients across our product portfolio.”
Other key updates to the Walmart sustainable chemistry commitment include:
- Transparency: Although not a new requirement, Walmart still holds the expectation that suppliers will provide full ingredient disclosure of priority chemicals both online and now on product packages starting in 2018. Walmart looks to spur supplier transparency in cleaning products with new ingredient information on packaging, enabling customers to simply turn over the product and see ingredient information, in many ways similar to what customers already see and expect for food, beauty and personal care products.
- Enhanced Formulation: Walmart is adding two new regulatory lists to its priority chemicals list to better address fragrance allergens ingredients. In addition to its new chemical footprint reduction goal, Walmart will also ask suppliers to verify the purity of ingredients where contaminants of concern may exist.
- More Sustainable Products: Walmart looks to increase its assortment of sustainably formulated products by encouraging use of two additional third party verification programs that lend credibility to green chemistry and safer substitutions. The Cradle to Cradle (silver level and above) and EWG Verified programs are being recognized as aligning with Walmart’s commitment along with EPA Safer Choice. Additionally, Walmart is expanding the scope of its original private brand expectations to now include national brands.
Background
Walmart’s sustainable chemistry commitment, originally launched in 2013, covers approximately 90,000 products from 700 suppliers. Walmart consumables products include items like household cleaners, cosmetics and skincare items, and infant products, among others.
The retailer worked with a variety of stakeholders — suppliers, Environmental Defense Fund, EPA and others — to develop its sustainable chemistry commitment and a system for tracking and monitoring progress. By working with these stakeholders and reviewing a range of authoritative and regulatory lists, Walmart landed on a list of priority and high priority chemicals for targeted reduction.
Last year, Walmart released the list of high priority chemicals and for the first time outlined its progress to date on eliminating these substances from the products sold on store shelves. The company reports on progress in its Global Responsibility Report.
For more information on the Walmart Sustainable Chemistry Policy, please visit the Walmart Sustainability Hub.
About Walmart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world save money and live better - anytime and anywhere - in retail stores, online, and through their mobile devices 260 million customers and members visit our more than 11,600 stores under 59 banners in 28 countries and e-commerce websites in 11 countries. With fiscal year 2017 revenue of $485.9 billion, Walmart employs approximately 2.3 million associates worldwide. Walmart continues to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity. Additional information about Walmart can be found by visiting http://corporate.walmart.com, on Facebook at http://facebook.com/walmart and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/walmart.