Company : GIANT EAGLE
Program category : Social Impact

Origins:

In October of 2023, the City of Pittsburgh launched a ban on single-use plastic bags for retail stores along with a mandated $0.10 fee for paper bags. Giant Eagle “tied” or “leaned” into the natural synergy of the city’s legislation and its commitment to helping the neighborhoods it serves thrive by creating a paper bag fee pass-through initiative that directed 100% of the city-mandated paper bag funding to help nourish the environmental health of our Pittsburgh communities. Specifically, the funds support Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy, Tree Pittsburgh, Grow Pittsburgh, Riverlife and Allegheny Cleanways.

Contribution:

Although this program is in its early days, Giant Eagle has provided financial continuity for targeted community programs across the city of Pittsburgh. These programs look to plant hundreds of trees, remove thousands of pounds of debris and pollution from waterways, support urban farms and their efforts to grow thousands of pounds of local fruits and vegetables, and improve dozens of green spaces and community parks. Additionally, Giant Eagle is creating meaningful opportunities for its local Team Members to volunteer with each of the recipient organizations throughout 2024.

Objectives:

The City of Pittsburgh launched a ban on single-use plastic bags for retail stores along with a mandated $0.10 fee for paper bags. Our plan has always been to donate those mandated fees to local community organizations who focus on fostering community engagement via sustainability efforts. These efforts are focused, but not limited to: planting trees, removing thousands of pounds of debris and pollution from waterways, supporting urban farms and their efforts to grow thousands of pounds of local fruits and vegetables, and improving dozens of green spaces and community parks with the City of Pittsburgh.

Impact:

The City of Pittsburgh launched a ban on single-use plastic bags for retail stores along with a mandated $0.10 fee for paper bags. Since it's inception in late 2023, we have successfully "passed through" close to $100,000 to our local Sustainability partners: Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy, Tree Pittsburgh, Grow Pittsburgh, Riverlife and Allegheny Cleanways.

Quote:

“We have been long invested in our communities,” Mercil said. “It is something that is really core to our brand, but this is a new idea of being able to really invest at the neighborhood level and being able to give that money back. It seemed like the right thing to do.” Cara Mercil, Director of Sustainability, Giant Eagle Inc.