Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott attended the ECO:nomics conference in California this week. Wal-Mart has been heralded as a forerunner of corporate environmentalism: in 2005, the company announced big plans to “green up” its act. But when Scott was asked when Wal-Mart expects to achieve the environmental goals it set forth in 2005, Scott answered bluntly: “I have no idea when that will be.”
It’s the first time anyone from Wal-Mart has admitted so candidly that the company [...]
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Warning: long(ish) post ahead…
It’s been almost two weeks since I traveled to Kansas City for Wal-Mart’s Year-Beginning Meeting, so that’s probably more than enough time to think about the broad implications of CEO Lee Scott’s “Company of the Future” speech, and the plans outlined for energy efficiency and supply chain sustainability. In that time, I’ve also thought about Enterprise Rent-a-Car’s green initiatives, and Joel Makower and Greener World Media’s State of Green Business 2008 report (and I’ll be writing more about both). I’ve also spent some time at Wal-Mart Watch’s site, and read through some of the sustainability-related criticism that organization has offered.
Each meeting I’ve had with people at Wal-Mart has challenged me: there’s still that activist in me that wants to shout about past and current issues, and he competes with a more pragmatic business thinker who wants to praise the company (and others) for seeing a business case for sustainability. I think we need both voices to be a part of the mix: not just mine, of course, but many activists and business thinkers contributing to the conversation. To add my two cents, I’ll focus on some of the issues raised by the company.
Energy Efficiency: I’m pretty sure it’s universally accepted, even by critics, that Wal-Mart’s moves towards more energy-efficient stores are positive steps. This is also a prime example of good business thinking on sustainability: energy efficiency contributes to a healthier bottom line while also producing lower levels of emissions. Where I get tangled up, though, is the combination of these efforts with the company’s growth plans.
By Olga Orda •
January 28, 2008
(Image source: www.treehugger.com)
Ecolabelling.org — looking behind the labels
What’s green? And who says so?
Ecolabels are everywhere from Wal-Mart’s “seafood aisle” to my local grocery store. But, at the end of day, what do these labels really mean? Who’s behind them?
And, most importantly, can I rely on them to make my certified no-rainforests-were-destroyed-in-the-making-of-this-latte latte?
Ecolabelling.org – your source on the background of over 285 ecolabels around the world – makes it easier to [...]
As I noted in Thursday’s post, Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott’s “Company of the Future” speech to executives and store managers contained some intriguing visions for moves that Wal-Mart could make on helping its customers conserve energy. As I expected, several commenters expressed concern about other areas, particularly product sourcing. Conventional business thinking has heralded the efficiency of the company’s supply chain; activists, on the other hand, have noted that Wal-Mart (along with most major retailers) has benefited from more open global trade policies that, generally, have placed little or no emphasis on workers’ rights, occupational safety, or environmental impact.
Numerous companies have taken a beating for problems with factory conditions in the developing world, while the retail sector in general has had to face both PR and legal nightmares related to the movement of American operations to “cheaper foreign markets” (yeah, I’m paraphrasing Lou Dobbs here). Combine that with recent revelations that some goods from Chinese factories have been tainted with everything from lead to antifreeze, one might wonder why more multinationals aren’t racing back to the US and other more regulated markets. But that’s a different post…
Suppliers
Supply chain issues took up roughly a third of Scott’s speech last week, and, again, the CEO presented some bold concepts for how Wal-Mart might address problems raised by sourcing products from the developing world. The first concerned the company’s relationships with its suppliers:
By Jennifer Lance •
January 23, 2008
It’s no secret: I hate Wal-Mart. Honestly, I have only been inside a Wal-Mart store four times in my life, including buying batteries in Colby, Kansas on a cross-country childhood vacation, and every time I leave the store, I feel disgusted with American consumerism. This company’s initial practice of establishing stores in small communities to drive out “ma and pa” stores has contributed to the homogenizing of American retail. Furthermore,
Over 70% of products on Wal-Mart’s shelves are made in China. The recent string of product recalls shows the dangerous and even deadly consequences of Wal-Mart’s corporate bullying strategy to drive down the cost of products. Suppliers are forced to ship production to places like China where quality and labor standards are far less stringent.
Wal-Mart’s race to the bottom strategy leads to more than just unsafe products - it forces suppliers to cut corners when it comes to their own workers as well (walmartwatch.com).
I don’t care how green Wal-Mart attempts to be when they still sell dangerous products for children. I was shocked to learn that Wal-Mart is still selling, in some states, PVC vinyl backed baby bibs that contain lead despite a recall in Illinois.
Editor's note: I had hoped to actually complete this series last week, but my administrative duties got the best of me. So, here's part two on my trip to Bentonville, Arkansas, for Wal-Mart's media day and shareholders' meeting. You can find part one here.
After finishing up at Sam's Club, our next stop was the Bentonville Supercenter. Like the Sam's Club we visited, the Supercenter was fairly new: it had opened
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Last Thursday and Friday, I was on the road again. This time, my travels took me to Bentonville, Arkansas… yep, the home of Wal-Mart. The company invited me down for its annual shareholders' meeting and the media events preceding it. Over the next few days, I'll devote a few posts to what I saw, and what I thought.
Thursday's media event was jam-packed with activities, starting with a tour of Bentonville's Sam's Club.
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Back in December, the word leaked out that mega-retailer Wal-Mart had issued a "request for proposals" (RFP) on adding solar arrays to selected stores. When I interviewed Andy Ruben, the company's vice-president for sustainability, the company was still quiet about this program.
Today, the cat's officially out of the bag: Wal-Mart announced that it would purchasing solar power from "BP Solar, SunEdison LLC, and PowerLight, a subsidiary of SunPower Corporation, for
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On Thursday, we pointed to a BusinessWeek article (via Gristmill) that claimed "A number of organic farmers across the country say that Wal-Mart has backed off of aggressive plans to offer more organic foods." Writer Pallavai Gogoi quoted two organic farmers who said that orders from the giant retailer have dried up; the executive director of the Florida Certified Organic Growers & Consumers group further suggested the Wal-Mart's move into organic
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By Mark Brandon •
February 19, 2007
Can the Pariah be Rehabbed?Few companies raise the ire of the SRI crowd — or any other crowd, for that matter — as much as Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT). Most readers of Green Options do not need for me to recap all of the allegations of exploitative wages, sweatshop abuse, sprawl-mongering, Main Street destruction, and overall corporate rapaciousness. Yet, in the last year, the company has unveiled the following
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Andy Ruben is the Vice President for Corporate Strategy and Sustainability for Wal-Mart. Green Options’ Senior Editor Jeff McIntire-Strasburg spoke to Mr. Ruben on January 16, 2007 by phone. The company was preparing for the opening of its first High-Efficiency (HE. 1) store prototype in Kansas City, MO.
Green Options: The new high-efficiency store opens in on Friday. What can you tell me about the store, and how it’s different
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