CINCINNATI — Kroger Co. marked Earth Day on Thursday by announcing the expansion of its Simple Truth Recycling Program to include all of its private-label brands, including Private Selection, Kroger Brand, Comforts, Luvsome and Abound.

The newly expanded Kroger Our Brands Recycling Program is described as the first program of its kind and advances the retailer’s Zero Hunger | Zero Waste social and environmental impact plan.

Developed in partnership with international recycling leader TerraCycle, the Kroger Our Brands Recycling Program is designed to offer customers a free and easy way to recycle flexible plastic packaging, including potato chip and snack bags, shredded cheese bags, frozen food bags, pouches, deli meat and cheese bags, grain and bean bags, as well as flexible plastic pet food packages. The growing list of eligible products can be viewed at Kroger.com.

“Kroger continues to provide new and innovative solutions to recycle product packaging as part of our bold Zero Hunger | Zero Waste vision,” said Stuart Aitken, Kroger’s chief merchant and marketing officer. “The Kroger Our Brands Recycling Program offers customers an easy way to enjoy their favorite foods and support recycling in flexible plastic packaging. Our industry-leading program advances Kroger’s commitment to more sustainable packaging and complements other efforts to help build a stronger recycling infrastructure in the U.S.”

The program allows consumers who sign up to collect flexible plastic packaging (bags, pouches, liners, and wraps) from Kroger’s Our Brands in any available box. When the box is full, they ship it to TerraCycle using the free prepaid shipping label available in their account on the program page. The collected packaging will be cleaned and melted into hard plastic that can be remolded to make new recycled products.

“Flexible plastic consumer product packaging, including multi-layer films, helps preserve food quality and freshness but is harder to recycle and not accepted in curbside programs,” said Keith Dailey, Kroger’s group vice president of corporate affairs and chief sustainability officer. “Kroger recognizes the negative impact packaging—including plastic waste—can have on the environment. This is why we remain focused on innovative solutions for reusing and recycling packaging materials.”

Consumers earn points for every pound of eligible packaging they send in, and can redeem them as donations to participating charitable organizations. The Kroger Our Brands Recycling Program is open to any interested individual, school, office, or community organization.

“After seeing great success and excitement around the Simple Truth Recycling Program, Kroger is taking its recycling initiative to the next level with a solution for flexible plastic product packaging from all its exclusive brands,” said TerraCycle CEO and Founder, Tom Szaky. “Consumers participating in the program can now enjoy more of their favorite foods while minimizing their environmental impact.”

“Our customers’ response to the Simple Truth Recycling Program is a testament to its real impact and the growing consumer demand for more responsible packaging and easy recycling options,” said Ben Melillo, Kroger’s senior brand manager. “Through the Kroger Our Brands Recycling Program, we remain committed to doing our part and helping customers reduce their environmental footprint in simple ways that are rewarding.”

Kroger’s Our Brands are available for purchase in-store and through pickup, delivery, and ship and achieved its best year ever in 2020, exceeding $26.2 billion in sales. To download Kroger Our Brands Recycling Program photography, visit here.

Kroger has a separate but complementary program to facilitate even more recycling. The retailer’s in-store plastic film recycling allows customers the option to bring certain types of plastic films to the store for recycling by different partners. Customers can drop off single-use plastic grocery shopping bags, dry cleaning bags, newspaper sleeves, produce bags, bread bags, plastic cereal box liners, multi-pack case overwraps and more. (Items eligible for the Kroger Our Brands Recycling Program should not be returned to the in-store collection bins.)

Kroger’s 2020 ESG Report
Kroger’s latest sustainable packaging results can be viewed in its 2020 Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) report. The annual report builds on Kroger’s 14-year history of sustainability reporting, which has tracked the company’s journey to make its operations more efficient, use resources more responsibly and improve the health, safety, and well-being of the communities it serves. Kroger will release its 2021 ESG report later this year – which will be viewable at Sustainability.Kroger.com.