As part of its sustainable operations, Del Monte uses CHEP’s pooled (shared and reused) 48x40-inch pallets in the U.S., Central America, South America and Europe.
“CHEP provides packaging that is reused, vs. one-shot packaging that goes into a landfill,” says Fedor. “When we’re able to take a circular CHEP pallet through our system 10 times, well, that’s amazing.”
Fedor says Del Monte appreciates working with partners who shares its values, particularly when it comes to sustainability. CHEP and its parent company, Brambles, are helping customers eliminate waste, eradicate empty transport miles and cut out inefficiency through a collaborative new approach, Zero Waste World.
Since 2012, Del Monte has achieved significant sustainability savings by using 12.7 million CHEP pooled pallets.
- Removed 5,404,462 pounds of carbon emissions from the atmosphere, the equivalent of planting and growing 40,535 trees for 10 years, a veritable forest.
- Eliminated 7,162,310 pounds of solid waste from landfill.
- Demonstrated verifiable results, beginning with CHEP’s use of 99% certified timber (PEFC and FSC certifications) all the way to the eradication of empty miles.
CHEP’s 48x40-inch pooled pallets are part of Del Monte’s complete supply chain. For example, in Central America, heat-treated pallets go directly from a CHEP production facility to a Del Monte farm, where they are loaded, wrapped, packed onto a container, shipped to ports in the U.S. and then delivered to retailers. Given the timeliness of shipping fresh produce, the smooth movement of the CHEP pallets throughout the supply chain is critical.
Fedor says he values the successful, circular nature of the CHEP business model, and CHEP’s ability to quantify results.
“We ship CHEP pallets throughout the world, and we want to know we are vertically integrating sustainability from bottom to top,” says Fedor. “Having the numbers – such as CHEP’s use of 99% certified timber – helps. It shows that we’re going beyond what we do in our operations to preserve and conserve natural resources. We’re sourcing from suppliers who are also conservation-based and share our values.”