In celebration of Texas Recycles Day on Nov. 15, H-E-B is sharing ways the company reduces its impact on the environment through waste diversion efforts, along with several other initiatives to help conserve and protect the Texas environment.
Through “Our Texas, Our Future,” H-E-B’s mission is to increase awareness and education around sustainability efforts that help preserve land, water and air in the state. H-E-B recycled more than 636 million pounds of cardboard, plastics, office paper, food waste, metal and truck tires in 2021.
As part of this practice, H-E-B recycled 54 million pounds of food into animal feed and compost and H-E-B’s Hunger Relief Program donated 34 million pounds of food last year. Its recycling efforts last year saved the equivalent of 11 million trees, 1.6 million barrels of oil and enough energy to power more than 83,000 homes for one year.
H-E-B also has rolled out a product line, joined a labeling program and provides collection bins.
- The grocer launched Field & Future by H-E-B, a product line of household, personal care and baby products designed to be clean and green. There are almost 120 Field & Future by H-E-B products on shelf.
- In 2021, H-E-B became part of How2Recycle, a program that places labels on products to let customers know if the packaging can be recycled, which parts are recyclable and how to prepare material for recycling to reduce contamination. The labels are already on more than 2,300 H-E-B branded items.
- H-E-B has collection bins where customers can recycle retail shopping bags, produce bags, bread bags, dry cleaning bags, newspaper bags and plastic wrap. In 2021, H-E-B recycled 17.5 million pounds of plastic throughout its operation, including plastic from its collection bins.
H-E-B works with Keep Texas Recycling to help fund municipal recycling grants to cities and counties that need support launching and improving recycling programs. H-E-B gifted $150,000 to support the creation of a community recycling center in Ingleside, which opened this summer and will service several communities near the Gulf Coast town.
“Since the location opened this summer, the facility has received fantastic feedback from area residents excited to have an option to recycle,” said Rachel Hering, director of Keep Texas Recycling. “The focus of the recycling center is to reduce the amount of waste that goes to the landfill and residents are taking full advantage of the program and helping with that effort.”
Throughout the year, H-E-B works to promote sustainability initiatives throughout its own operations and through partnerships with environmental organizations across the state. Since 2012, H-E-B has contributed more than $20 million to more than 500 environmental organizations in land and water conservation, habitat and coastal preservation and community cleanups. This includes giving more than $2 million in grants to organizations such as Keep Texas Beautiful, Texas Conservation Fund and the Nature Conservancy in Texas.
