Walmart to highlight healthy, sustainable products with tags

Bengaluru

WALMART Inc will spotlight particularly healthy or sustainable products with a new "Built for Better" tag on its website, an attempt to entice shoppers who want to vote for better nutrition and environmental stewardship with their wallets.

The initiative will start with almost 2,000 items, the world's biggest retailer said on Tuesday, and the number is set to grow. The goods will be grouped into two areas, those considered better for the customer's health and those deemed good for the planet.

Consumer companies from retail giants to PepsiCo Inc are rushing to satisfy customers who are rethinking the impact of their spending in ways they didn't before. For Walmart, that means acknowledging that its famous formula of everyday low prices isn't enough for a growing number of shoppers.

"Customers have always trusted us for our low prices, but today they also want to know that the products they buy are good for their families, the people that made them and the planet," Jane Ewing, Walmart's senior vice-president of sustainability, said in a blog post. "For many of our customers, living better means shopping intentionally and prioritising brands and products that align with the things that matter to them."

A "Built for Better - For You" tag will highlight more nutritious goods or products that are made without particular materials or ingredients. The "Built for Better - For the Planet" icons will be for items "with a focus on sustainably sourced and climate-conscious products."

Customers can learn more about the criteria for selecting such goods in a methodology page on Walmart's website.

The initiative is part of Walmart's drive to become a "regenerative company", Ms Ewing said. That means putting human and environmental well-being at the centre of the company's business practices, she said. BLOOMBERG