Grocer paves new store parking lot with the equivalent of more than 6 million recycled single-use plastic bags, promoting plastic reduction and reuse
Image: Sobeys launches Canada’s first parking lots paved using post-consumer plastics diverted from local landfills. Photo: courtesy of CNW Group/Sobeys Inc.
Sobeys Inc. opened a brand-new store in Timberlea, Nova Scotia. The grand opening kicked off this morning, welcoming customers and the local community to a celebration that included the unveiling of one of Canada’s first parking lots paved using post-consumer plastics that have been diverted from local landfills. The amount of recycled plastics used in the mixture is the equivalent of more than 6 million plastic checkout bags. This innovative approach to plastics reduction and reuse follows the Company’s industry-leading commitment to remove plastic grocery bags from all Sobeys grocery stores by the end of January 2020, a change that will take 225 million plastic grocery bags out of circulation at Sobeys’ 255 locations across Canada each year.
The new store will be operated by Store Manager Troy Goulden, a long-standing member of the Timberlea community. His store team is thrilled to open this new store in a growing community.
“My team and I are proud to bring a brand-new Sobeys store to our local community,” said Store Manager Troy Goulden. “We invite our new neighbours and local families to visit the store and experience our great features like the in-store pharmacy, fresh salad and noodle bars, store-made sushi and a large assortment of delicious, freshly prepared meals for busy families. We’re also showing our customers that we care about our community and encouraging them to join us as partners in doing our part when it comes to the future of our planet by using reusable bags when they shop our store.”
Over the past four months, Sobeys Inc. and Crombie REIT, developer and property manager for the Sobeys Timberlea site, have worked directly with local small business Goodwood Plastic Products, a business based in Colchester County committed to finding smart solutions for recycling plastic materials, to research and develop the new asphalt pavement mixture.
Sobeys Inc. also worked with Goodwood Plastic Products who provided the recycled plastics lumber used for Sobeys Inc.’s Ultimate Picnic Table, that was unveiled on the Halifax waterfront late last month and diverted 60,000 single-use plastic bags from local landfills. The new Sobeys Timberlea store has a picnic bench made from Goodwood Plastic Product’s recycled plastics lumber onsite for customers to enjoy.
“As a company, we are proud of our Nova Scotia roots, that’s why we’re especially thrilled to continue growing our store network right here in our home province while finding unique ways to innovate locally and drive sustainability,” said Vittoria Varalli, Vice President, Sustainability, Sobeys Inc. “The post-consumer plastics parking lot and picnic bench out front, is one more way we are doing our part to integrate sustainability and innovation into our business. Projects like this represent the changes we all want to see – reduced single-use plastics, more reuse, and increased recycling of plastic waste.”
The grand opening excitement will continue through the week, with ongoing deals, specials, giveaways, food sampling and in-store demos. In celebration of the opening, Sobeys Timberlea has also donated $2,500 to Feed Nova Scotia to help local communities.
Source: Company Press Release