Background
Loffredo Fresh Produce is a full-line produce and specialty foods distributor that offers a wide variety of local and global products. Working out of five major distribution centers in Des Moines, Kansas City, Omaha, Madison, and Quad Cities, Loffredo focuses on working with local growers in their respective regions across a large product list that includes Fresh Fruits and Vegetables, Fresh-Cut Items, Cheese and Dairy, Pantry, Eggs, Gourmet, Hors d’oeuvres, and Spices.
Focus on Sustainability
Loffredo is constantly looking for ways to make measurable strides towards their goal of creating a greener tomorrow. As a member of Pro*Act and Green Business Bureau, some of the key greening and sustainability initiatives Loffredo has implemented include:
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- Scrap program that delivers over 5 million pounds of scraps per year to local farms
- Installation of LED lighting throughout their warehouses
- New efficient battery charging stations for forklifts
- Turning off lights after leaving all common areas i.e.; Breakroom, Bathrooms, Office, Hallways
- Carpool and Bike-to-Work Day
- DriveCam technology helps to monitor routes, promote safe driving, and eliminate excess braking and acceleration
- RoadNet solution enables them to route stops in the most efficient way possible to save miles and fuel
- Minimizing water usage through improved operational procedures
- Increased recycling solutions
- Planting and maintenance of an Employee Garden
Other ongoing initiatives include:
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- Continuing efforts to eliminate paper and energy by using their Warehouse Management System
- Expansion of cardboard and general recycling programs
- Plastic water bottle reduction program
Tackling Food Waste
Between their processing facility and distribution warehouses, Loffredo produces over five million pounds – or 2,500 tons – of food waste each year. As a way to deal with this issue in a sustainable way, they have developed a program to divert all food scraps to local farms to use for cattle feed. Currently, they deliver food scraps to local farms in the Des Moines, Iowa area about five times per week. These scraps are donated to the farms at zero cost to them, so not only does it significantly benefit the local farming community, it also diverts waste from local landfills.
At Loffredo Fresh Produce, we are aware that the world is always changing, and so are we. As a company, we want to ensure future generations enjoy the earth as much as our ancestors did when they founded our company 125 years ago.
Enriching Communities
Loffredo believes that it takes individual businesses working hand-in-hand with customers and suppliers to make a difference for sustainability, and that each small step plays a part in improving the delicate environment around us.
One of the reasons Loffredo chose Green Certification through Green Business Bureau was to leverage the platform for sharing their greening and sustainability successes with their customers and followers on social media. They want their current and future customers to know that they care not only about creating a better planet, but that they care deeply about the communities where they operate and in which they serve.
While Loffredo’s food waste program is an innovative (and generous) way to deal with tons of food scraps, it’s also a program that could be replicated across the country at other food related producers, manufacturers, and distributors. And that represents only one of many initiatives that this forward-thinking company has implemented to benefit their customers, employees, communities, and the environment.
For more information, please visit www.loffredo.com
