SEOUL, Korea (AVING) -- <Visual News> SAN BERNARDINO, Calif., Dec. 1, 2010 -- On Earth Day 2009, Stater Bros. introduced a "Green Waste" Composting Program in all its 167 Supermarket locations to turn organic waste into compost that is sold to area farmers. For this environmentally friendly program along with the Company's many other recycling efforts, Stater Bros. was recognized as a 2010 WRAP (Waste Reduction Awards Program) Winner by the California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle).
In total, Stater Bros. eliminated 141,489,966 pounds of waste from landfills in 2009. The new Stater Bros. Composting Program removed over 27 million pounds of waste from landfills in its eight months of operation in 2009. The Company's other notable green programs include recycling cardboard (over 74 million pounds in 2009), recycling sustainable rendering products (over 8.5 million pounds in 2009), donating food to local food banks (over 3.8 million pounds in 2009), and recycling plastic bags (over 2.8 million pounds in 2009). In addition, the Company's weekly ad is printed on recycled paper, and Stater Bros. participates in California's Voluntary Demand Response Program to reduce energy consumption at store level when demand is high.
Stater Bros. has also established an employee Green Team with representatives from all areas of the Company. The Green Team is committed to reviewing, selecting and implementing business practices that promote the long-term well being of the company, the community, and the environment that we all share.
"Stater Bros. believes in doing the right thing for the right reason, stated Jack H. Brown, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Stater Bros. Supermarkets. "Protecting our environment is the 'right thing' and the 'right reason' is so future generations can live in a better world."
The CalRecycle Waste Reduction Awards Program (WRAP) has been recognizing the environmentally friendly business strategies of California businesses since 1993.
Stater Bros. Supermarkets was founded in 1936 in Yucaipa, California, and has grown steadily through the years to become the largest privately owned Supermarket Chain in Southern California and the largest private employer in both San Bernardino County and Riverside County, with annual sales in 2009 of $3.77 billion. The Company currently operates 167 Supermarkets, and there are over 18,000 members of the Stater Bros. Supermarket Family. Stater Bros. is the proud recipient of the "2010 Community Service Award" from America's Supermarket Industry and will celebrate its 75th Anniversary in 2011.