Driving Change and Building Stronger Communities Core Values for SpartanNash

The SpartanNash vision is to be a “best-in class business that feels local, where relationships matter.” Company leadership knows that customers have choices where to shop, so good employees and connections to the local communities the company serves become critical, driving stability and the economic growth of its communities, associates and suppliers.

These things are not optional, says Meredith Gremel, Vice President, Corporate Affairs and Communications.

“It is SpartanNash’s corporate duty to use our voice and influence to drive change and to collectively build stronger communities.”

One way this gets accomplished is through the Community Captains program, which is conducted at every distribution center and at every service center. At each location, a volunteer Community Captain is selected by the upper management of the location, and that Captain in turn creates a platoon of fellow associates who want to help impact their community in a positive way. These platoons host spirit weeks, go to community events and create a purpose beyond their paycheck within their communities. They also share monthly reports with other captains across the country to create a best practices network that further develops the program.

Another example of driving change and building stronger communities is the SpartanNash advocacy for service learning. A volunteer-incentive program sees employees report their annual volunteer hours and at 100 volunteer hours employees are able to have a donation made to a community organization of their choice in their name.

Gremel says such programs “build those local relationships in a stronger way than we can at the corporate level.”

SpartanNash has strong diversity hiring initiatives and tracks its demographics internally to ensure that it is staffing in such a way as to reflect the populations of the communities they serve.

A commitment to military, veterans and migrant workers

SpartanNash also has other causes that are a consistent part of its core values, including a strong commitment to military and veterans as well as a commitment to fair and just treatment of migrant workers through their participation in the “Fair Food Pledge.” In fact, they were the first food distributor and retailer in Michigan to sign Migrant Legal Aid’s Fair Food Pledge, affirming their commitment to fair labor practices for the state’s migrant and seasonal farmworkers and their families. They also support the Fair Food Network’s “Double-Up” program in which a token system is used alongside SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) to ensure local families have access to fresh and local fruits and veggies. And not only does SpartanNash support many military commissaries nationally, it also employs more than 700 veterans, believing that “freedom is not free, and it is important to us that we remember and honor that price.”

SpartanNash also works hard to not only support its communities but to also support its associates and employees, driven by a belief that diversity in its workforce (whether that be race, lifestyles, education, etc) is what drives a broader range of perspectives which ultimately drives a culture of inclusion and innovation. In order to maintain a culture of diversity, equity and inclusion, SpartanNash has strong diversity hiring initiatives and tracks its demographics internally to ensure that it is staffing in such a way as to reflect the populations of the communities they serve. SpartanNash also has leadership programs that promote the training and development of its associates.

SpartanNash is looking to implement better ways of not having food waste, especially in categories like meat, dairy and produce that have a shorter shelf-life. These efforts include diverting waste into animal feed and working closely in partnership with local food pantries.

Addressing food waste a priority now and for the future

Annually, SpartanNash locations participate in Earthweek festivities via everything from seed giveaways to tree plantings to roadside cleanups, plus a plethora of environmental education. For example, reusable bag giveaways allow SpartanNash to spark a conversation with its customers about the impact of plastic grocery bags on the environment.

Looking ahead, SpartanNash hopes to solve its challenge of providing better, safer and more efficient options to address food waste in the U.S. Gremel notes that some 40 percent of the food grown and produced in the U.S. is wasted. This includes food from restaurants and grocery stores, and SpartanNash is looking to implement better ways of not having food waste, especially in categories like meat, dairy and produce that have a shorter shelf-life. These efforts include diverting waste into animal feed and working closely in partnership with local food pantries.

Not only is SpartanNash talking the talk of corporate responsibility, but through its social and environmental programs, it is also walking the walk.

SpartanNash understands that their business decisions, products, and services and their operations have a direct impact on the environment and the communities, customers, and associates.  Their social responsibility and environmental sustainability programs together make up the broader SpartanNash Corporate Responsibility commitment.  The SpartanNash “Corporate Responsibility: Social and Environmental Progress Report” was recently published.  Learn more at https://www.spartannash.com/corp-responsibility/.