Kroger

Kroger has no public written safer chemicals policy. In 2017, it disclosed it is currently working with key stakeholders to review options for a future chemicals policy but has not moved forward in launching one since then. The company recently shared that it “continues to review additional product categories as well as data tracking capabilities as [it] evaluate[s] the opportunity for a broader safer chemicals policy.”

The company also shared that it recently initiated work on creating a Restricted Substances List (RSL), which goes beyond regulatory requirements, for its General Merchandise products, specifically apparel products (recognizing that apparel is one of the most environmentally-intensive production processes), and will be working with an external expert to develop this list.

The company has not set public quantifiable goals for reducing and eliminating chemicals of high concern and does not have a publicly available Beyond Restricted Substance List (BRSL) or publicly available Manufacturing Restricted Substance List (MRSL).

A corporate manager has some responsibility for product safety related to chemical hazards in products. The company states: “Kroger’s Corporate Food Technology group’s mission is to ensure food safety, and that includes continuous evaluation of Kroger’s products for attributes that are undesirable to our customers for health and safety reasons. Kroger’s Board of Directors is regularly briefed on the company’s robust food safety efforts.” The company also recently shared that “in addition to the leadership of its Corporate Food Technology group in ensuring product safety, Kroger relies on the expertise and guidance of its Our Brands, packaging, manufacturing and compliance teams, including its Chief Ethics & Compliance Officer, to identify opportunities to move to safer chemicals, such as the work underway to developing a beyond-regulatory RSL for apparel.”

It is not clear if the board is engaged in a chemical policy or if there are financial incentives for senior management to implement safer chemical policies.

Kroger is in the process of developing a Restricted Substance List (RSL) for apparel. The company recently stated: “Kroger will engage its suppliers in the development of its RSL for apparel in several ways:
1. We will engage our suppliers during the RSL development process by gathering the suppliers’ chemical management status through a survey. This survey is drafted and planned to be distributed to our apparel suppliers in October.
2. Along with the beyond regulatory RSL development, a testing verification process will be established to monitor the supplier compliance with the RSL.
3. A training will be provided to apparel suppliers regarding the apparel chemical management process, including the RSL and expections for suppliers on their chemical management and the verification assurance process.”

There is no discernible effort to assess supplier conformance with safer chemicals policy (because Kroger has no public safer chemicals policy). Kroger does utilize routine third-party product testing to facilitate chemicals reporting requirements for children’s products sold in the states of Oregon and Washington, but this is primarily to meet regulatory requirements.

No discernible action on disclosure of ingredients that goes beyond OSHA Safety Data Sheet requirements or other compliance purposes.

In 2011, the company pledged to address BPA in canned food liners. It reported new progress in its 2018 Sustainability Report, stating: “Kroger is steadfast in its efforts to remove BPA from the linings of Our Brands packages. We have made significant progress in engaging our canned goods suppliers to transition to feasible, Non-BPA alterna tives. As of May 2018, we have converted 92% of applicable Our Brands canned goods to Non-BPA liners. This includes all canned offerings under our Simple Truth Organic® brand. As packaging labels get updated, customers can identify which canned goods have Non-BPA liners by simply locating our standardized Non-BPA liner icon across the Our Brands portfolio.” This demonstrates substantive progress over time, though more limited compared to last year, when it reported that it had converted 90%. The company has still not disclosed a full timeframe for completely eliminating and safely substituting BPA in private label and brand name canned food liners, though recently shared it “currently has a commitment to remove BPA from its canned Our Brands products.”

Kroger recently reported that it “removed parabens, phthalates and formaldehyde donors from several Kroger brand health and beauty care items including skin lotions, skin cleansers, sunscreen, oral care and shampoo” and that these reformulated products arrived on store shelves in 2018. The company shared that it “is also evaluating Our Brands products against the EPA Safer Choice program specifications.”

The company notes: “Kroger continuously evaluates its products for undesirable ingredients in order to keep our customers safe and to respond to their concerns. We review products on a category basis to remove chemicals of concern and undesirable ingredients such as artificial colors and flavors, additives and preservatives.” In addition, Kroger’s Simple Truth and Simple Truth Organic brands maintain lists of undesirable ingredients for both its food and non-food products that suppliers must comply with in order to produce these products. Currently, Kroger has 1,400 unique Simple Truth and Simple Truth Organic products on the market and continues to expand its Simple Truth and Simple Truth Organic product lines. A list of Kroger’s FREE FROM ingredients can be found on its Simple Truth website: https://www.simpletruth.com/why-simple-truth/free-from/. The company also states: “Over the last several years, the Our Brands team has responded to customers’ requests to remove certain ingredients from our products. We have also worked to reformulate alternatives for our baby products. They are now free from triclosan, quaternium-15, phthalates, parabens and chlorine free pulp. By the end of 2014, Our Brands body washes and antibacterial soaps were triclosan-free.”

The company states that: “Kroger works with its suppliers to find replacements for undesirable product ingredients. Suppliers must demonstrate the safety of the alternatives they are using, with suitable alternatives varying by product category” but does not define how it evaluates alternatives. The reports “Kicking the Can?” and “BPA Buyer Beware,” published respectively in 2017 and 2016, documented regrettable substitutes, such as vinyl and styrene based resins, in Kroger’s BPA-free cans. This demonstrates that Kroger must develop a more robust program to evaluate alternatives when eliminating or reducing chemicals of high concern to avoid regrettable substitutes such as these.

In 2017, Kroger stated it “is currently working with key stakeholders to review options for a future chemicals policy.” The company recently shared that it “recently initiated work on creating a Restricted Substances List (RSL), which goes beyond regulatory requirements, for its General Merchandise products, specifically apparel products (recognizing that apparel is one of the most environmentally-intensive production processes), and will be working with an external expert to develop this list.” The company went on to state: “Kroger continues to review additional product categories as well as data tracking capabilities as we evaluate the opportunity for a broader safer chemicals policy.” However, no policy or RSL are publicly available.

The company states on its website that: “As packaging labels get updated, customers will be able to identify which canned goods have Non BPA liners by simply locating our standardized Non BPA liner icon across our corporate brands portfolio.” However, the company has not committed to publicly disclosing the identity of the alternative materials. The company does not appear to further encourage or require the disclosure of ingredients in products online or on product packaging.

No discernible progress on chemical footprint.

Kroger sells products that meet credible third-party safer chemicals standards going beyond regulatory compliance. For example, Kroger carries EPA Safer Choice products produced by brands such as Earth Friendly Products, CLR, Seventh Generation and Quick Shine. Kroger promotes safer products such as these through its in-store and online Sustainability Lives Here sales event. The company recently shared it “is also evaluating Our Brands products against the EPA Safer Choice program specifications.”

No discernible public commitment via joint announcement.

Kroger reported some continued progress in reducing the use of BPA in can linings since last year. The company has converted 92% of its Our Brands canned food liners away from BPA, compared to the 90% conversion reported last year. In 2017, the company shared its goal to have 100% of these cans to be “BPA non intent.” The company reports it has achieved a 100% replacement rate for its Simple Truth and Simple Truth Organic canned food products as well as several other product categories.

In 2018, the company shared it “removed parabens, phthalates and formaldehyde donors from several Kroger brand health and beauty care items including skin lotions, skin cleansers, sunscreen, oral care and shampoo.” The company is also in the process of developing a restrcited substance list (RSL) for apparel going beyond regulatory requirements.

Kroger’s line of Simple Truth products reached another milestone in 2017, achieving $2 billion in sales. This occurred within five years of launching the brand exclusively in its stores. The product line includes laundry, cleaning, and health and beauty care products and is free of certain chemicals of concern, including parabens, triclosan, and methylene chloride.

No indication of active participation in collaborative process to promote safer chemicals.

No indication that company invests significant financial resources into independent research into safer alternatives to chemicals of high concern and/or green chemistry solutions.