Grand Marais became a more environmentally friendly place through green refrigeration operation and maintenance practices at Cook County Whole Foods Co-op. In striving to protect both the ozone layer and climate system, the Co-op’s refrigeration practices brought distinctive national recognition to town. For achieving the lowest refrigerant emissions rate among small partners, the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) GreenChill Program presented Cook County Whole Foods Co-op with the Best Emissions Rate award. The Co-op is thrilled to be a 2019 recipient, and Jennifer Stoltz, General Manager, accepted this recognition in Dallas, Texas, at the Food Marketing Institute’s Energy & Store Development Conference on September 10, 2019.

Reducing refrigerant emissions is a significant step toward helping the environment. If every supermarket achieved GreenChill standards each year, the supermarket industry could save more than $212 million in refrigerant replacement costs and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by an amount equal to 6.4 million cars, 2.9 billion gallons of gasoline, or 7.7 coal-fired power plants. The Co-op is proud to be a part of this ambitious goal.

“Cook County Whole Foods Co-op can be very proud of the accomplishment,” said Tom Land, manager of EPA’s GreenChill Partnership. “People want to do business with stores that share their environmental values. By dedicating itself to GreenChill’s mission, the Co-op has demonstrated to its customers and community that it is serious about helping to save our Earth’s ozone layer and protecting our environment.”

Cook County Whole Foods Co-op strives to fulfill its goal of being a leader in environmentally sustainable practices in multiple ways: the store boasts triple glazed windows, more insulation than required by code, energy efficient lighting, a system that recovers heat from refrigeration to heat water and the building, and solar panels. The Co-op wants customers and owners to be proud of the fact that it actively does it’s best to protect the environment.

EPA’s GreenChill Partnership works with supermarkets to reduce refrigerant emissions and decrease their environmental impacts. The Partnership helps supermarkets transition to environmentally friendlier refrigerants; reduce harmful refrigerant emissions; and adopt greener refrigeration technologies and environmental best practices. There are approximately 11,000 GreenChill Partner stores throughout the nation. For more information on EPA’s GreenChill Partnership, please visit www.epa.gov/greenchill.