WHOLE FOODS TEAMS WITH ENERGYSMART JOBS AND PECI TO MEASURE ENERGY SAVINGS

Showcasing its strong commitment to energy efficiency, Whole Foods is partnering with EnergySmart Jobs and PECI to achieve measurable savings through high-efficiency refrigeration retrofits. Unique to this project is Whole Food’s openness to participate in a comprehensive technical evaluation of the upgrades the grocer has made with the help of the EnergySmart Jobs Program.

EnergySmart Jobs works with grocers, supermarkets and other commercial retail businesses throughout California to lower their operating costs by reducing the amount of energy they use. Whole Foods was drawn to the program not only for the potential energy savings, but also for the opportunity to improve the environmental impact of their stores. On top of that, EnergySmart Jobs is giving California a boost by creating hundreds of new sustainable jobs in the fast-growing energy efficiency industry.

EnergySmart Jobs and PECI are partnering with Whole Foods – Franklin and Whole Foods – Palo Alto, two Northern California stores, to quantify the actual amount of energy that each individual store is saving.

“Whole Foods Market has been fortunate to work with PECI for several years in our Northern California region, and significant energy efficiency improvements have been made, resulting in substantial cost savings as well,” said Kathy Loftus, Global Leader of Sustainable Engineering at Whole Foods. “When the opportunity to participate in the EnergySmart Jobs program came up, we enthusiastically agreed, as it not only helps grow the local economy, but also helps us prove the benefits of these improvements across our company and the industry.”

These two stores are part of six Whole Foods stores participating in the EnergySmart Jobs Program and each of them will be installing new energy management systems (EMS), programmed to float head and suction pressure to improve the refrigeration system efficiency. Rebates from EnergySmart Jobs cover a portion of the upfront investment costs. Together with applicable utility incentives, these rebates make it easy and affordable for grocers like Whole Foods to adopt new energy-efficient technologies.

Data loggers installed at several of these Whole Foods locations will monitor the amount of energy used by the refrigeration system condenser and compressor fans, offering a clear before-and-after picture. This is a rare and exciting opportunity, as the information collected from this study will enable PECI and EnergySmart Jobs to provide more accurate and detailed energy-use estimates for future projects.

The measurement and verification effort represents a strong commitment by Whole Foods to energy conservation. It also demonstrates the high level of expertise and thoroughness provided by EnergySmart Jobs and PECI in helping participating businesses reach their energy efficiency goals.