Sustainability is at the heart Walmart’s business practices today, and it is a priority of the Walmart Foundation’s philanthropic efforts. The company is working to evolve its practices to ensure people — and Mother Nature — are the focus of decisions. Along with a host of other leading businesses, Walmart has established sustainability goals and guiding principles.
“Most of the initiatives are business led — meaning we are pursuing change through normal business practices,” says Gregory Bohrer, director of natural capital at Walmart. “Things like helping farmers and ranchers with practices like diversifying crop rotations, or helping ranchers develop grazing management plans. We are collaborating with our suppliers to actively incorporate more sustainable practices in their supply chains as part of our commitment to regeneration and help them reach their sustainability goals.”
Walmart’s Project Gigaton encourages suppliers to take climate action in six key areas: energy, waste, packaging, product use and design, transportation and nature. Suppliers are asked to set goals and report on the impact of their efforts across the six pillars. For nature, they are asked to report their progress to protect, restore or more sustainably manage the fields, forests and fisheries that produce the raw materials that go into their products. Project Gigaton is designed to provide guidance and direction as suppliers work their way to a more sustainable future.
The Walmart Foundation’s recent $750,000 grant to the National FFA Foundation is helping FFA incorporate sustainability principles in school education.
As companies such as Walmart encourage sustainability practices throughout the supply chain, future leaders must be equipped to navigate these important issues. Whether your future involves production agriculture or any of the supporting careers, sustainability will be at the forefront.
“That’s why the Walmart Foundation supports educational initiatives that help further our sustainability goals,” Bohrer says. “We know that reaching a more sustainable future will take time and effort, and we have a great partner in FFA to help us engage the next generation of agriculture professionals in this work.”
You don’t need to be a large supplier to a major company to make sustainability part of your daily activities. Think about all you do in a day and then find ways you can incorporate sustainability. FFA and its corporate partners are proud to help you learn more. Check out these educational resources from Darling Ingredients and Valent USA.
