Entries have opened for South Africa’s most prestigious accolade for restaurants contributing to more socially and environmentally responsible practices. Introduced in 2016, the Eat Out Woolworths Sustainability Award acknowledges the restaurant that brings its customers seasonal, local and ethically sourced produce with minimal impact on the surrounding environment while … [Read more...]
Partners to boost innovative recycling villages
World Environment Day saw the building of three new recycling villages and the upgrade of two more in KwaZulu-Natal. WILDLANDS recycling villages, which are at the forefront of recycling and the recycling circular economy in South Africa, are part of a well-established WILDTRUST programme. In celebration of World Environment Day, a day that encourages citizen-action to … [Read more...]
Next phase in plastic bag free trial announced
During the trial, which was launched in November 2018, over 100 000 single-use bags were saved from going out into the environment as customers opted for affordable, reusable shopping bags. After a six month trial in four of its Western Cape stores, including the launch of their first plastic bag free store, Woolworths confirms that it will be rolling out its new low-cost, … [Read more...]
Now for responsibly sourced till paper
While the till slip is a relatively insignificant bit of paper in the hands of a shopper, for retailers globally the scale of this paper consumption is huge. The heavyweight impact of Woolworths’ latest ‘responsibly sourced’ commodity announcement to replace their till slip paper with Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paper involves 211 tonnes of paper per year. The … [Read more...]
Partners collaborate for community learning and food security
We are very excited to announce the Living Soils Community Learning Farm, which will demonstrate ecologically-restorative methods of growing nutrient-rich foods to improve community food security. Woolworths has joined hands with its supplier, Spier wine farm; the Sustainability Institute and its AgroEcology Academy to launch the Living Soils Community Learning Farm, in the … [Read more...]
One small spoon Christmas campaign raises R2 million to combat hunger
One third of all food produced in South Africa goes to landfills… see how consumers unlocked 2.5 million meals for hungry people. Christmas is a distant memory already, but thanks to Woolies and their customers, meals will be given to those who need it most throughout 2019. The Woolworths One Small Spoon Christmas campaign united customers to help raise R2 million to help … [Read more...]
Paper-stemmed earbuds help reduce ocean plastic
Do you know that ear buds are one of the top ocean polluters which we pick up during beach clean-ups? Hence the following good news is so welcome: Woolworths has kick started the year with its latest announcement in its journey to ZERO packaging waste to landfill, with the roll out of Woolworths branded paper-stemmed earbuds. Switching to paper-stemmed earbuds might seem … [Read more...]
International cleanup reveals SA’s biggest beach pollutants
The results of the 2018 International Coastal Clean-up, which took place on Saturday, 15 September 2018, have just been released. “For more than two decades, thousands of South African volunteers have been joining the rest of the world on the third Saturday of September to remove, collect and document the litter from our country’s coastlines. During the 2018 event, 19,563 … [Read more...]
Christmas windows: from waste to wow!
A local empowerment project hopes to raise awareness of the importance of re-using, re-purposing and recycling plastics. Woolworths will be giving a new spin on the concept of a ‘waste not, want not’ festive season this year as locally-made repurposed plastic flower artworks are the focal point of their Christmas windows in the top 15 stores. The show-stopping designs … [Read more...]
Sustainable palm oil-certified pies a step in the right direction
Most responsible consumers are worried about the environmental, animal and social destruction of palm oil plantations and wonder how to negotiate their shopping without adding to the damage. Woolworths pies are the first South African food products to be certified by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). Early in 2018, Woolworths launched South Africa’s first … [Read more...]
Food security campaign launched on World Food Day
The One Small Spoon campaign echoes the theme of today’s 2018 World Food Day, ‘Our actions are our future’ and emphasises that if we come together we can solve seemingly intractable problems such as hunger. Woolworths celebrates World Food Day with the launch of the One Small Spoon campaign to unite its employees, customers, suppliers, farmers, and other partners in a … [Read more...]
Shopping without plastic bags?
South Africa does not have a law banning plastic bags. However, to reduce littering and discourage customers from buying them, the plastic bag levy was increased in April by 50 percent to 12 cents per bag. SA department store chain Woolworths Holdings will be removing single-use plastic bags from one of its stores during a six-month trial period in a bid to end plastic … [Read more...]
Food store employees assist with local schools’ food gardens
In celebration of this year’s World Food Day’s theme – ‘Our Actions are our Future’, volunteer groups of Woolworths employees from across the country have rolled up their sleeves and gone to work with learners in local schools permaculture food gardens. For most employees it will be the first time that they are participating in an EduPlant volunteer day. The schools were … [Read more...]
