Waste and Circularity
Our Aspiration
Walmart aims to be part of the transition from a 'take-make-dispose' approach to one that values the reuse, recycling, and regeneration of materials. We aspire to reduce waste in our global operations and work with suppliers, customers, and communities to accelerate the adoption of innovative packaging and products that meet our customers' needs while minimizing waste.
Relevance to Our Business and Society
Food, other products, and packaging continuously move through our facilities and networks and on to our customers. Wasting any of it ultimately drives up costs. Stakeholders expect us to operate in a way that maximizes efficiency and minimizes waste.
Eliminating Operational Waste
Designing and executing programs to address key waste streams in Walmart’s store, club, and distribution and fulfillment center operations.
- Walmart seeks to reduce operational waste by optimizing material use, expanding reuse and recovery, and improving materials handling across stores, clubs, distribution centers, and fulfillment facilities.
- In 2025, Walmart diverted 84.0% of operational waste from landfill and incineration globally, with diversion measuring 84.8% in the U.S., 85.1% in Canada, and 82.8% in Mexico
- Progress was supported by expanded food recovery programs, increased pallet reuse and recycling, and stronger market-specific diversion pathways.
- Diversion examples include recycling 6.1 billion pounds of cardboard, reusing 117 million break-pack boxes, recycling 272 million pounds of plastics and films, reusing 141 million wood pallets, and repurposing more than 400,000 tires into commercial entrance mats.
Reducing Food Loss and Waste
Addressing drivers of food loss and waste in our operations and value chain to reduce unsold food and divert it to the highest value use besides disposal.
- Walmart continues working toward its goal of reducing global operational Food Loss and Waste intensity by 50% by 2030 versus a 2016 baseline. In 2025, we reported that we had reduced our intensity by 3.45% against the baseline. Reported food loss and waste intensity increased year over year even as more material was diverted from landfill as additional food was intentionally redirected into composting and similar recovery pathways through the Zero De-Pack program. Under the Food Loss and Waste Standard these pathways are classified as food loss, illustrating how accounting outcomes can differ from operational improvements. Growth in Walmart's grocery business also increased food volumes moving through operations, reinforcing the need to continue expanding recovery technologies, infrastructure, and recovery pathways.
- Walmart prioritizes preventing surplus food, then keeping edible food in the food supply chain through sales and donations before directing remaining material to animal feed, biochemical processing, composting, anaerobic digestion, and disposal only as a last resort.
- Food donation remains a major priority. Walmart donated more than 878 million pounds of food globally in 2025. More than 94% of U.S. stores, clubs, and distribution centers participated in food donation programs with Feeding America, providing the equivalent of more than 640 million meals.
- Walmart also directed 225 million pounds of food to animal feed, 54.2 million pounds to biochemical processing, 669 million pounds to composting, and 247 million pounds to anaerobic digestion. De-packaging technology deployed to more than 4,500 U.S. locations increased recovered organic material by 60% and reduced compactor trash by 12%.
- Walmart is strengthening prevention through forecasting, assortment planning, AI-enabled inventory tracking sourcing tools, and IoT sensors, merchandising improvements, markdowns, and programs that market cosmetically imperfect produce while helping reduce spoilage.
Optimizing Packaging
Designing packaging to reduce material use, increase recyclability, and minimize waste across our private brand portfolio.
- Walmart focuses on eliminating unnecessary packaging, improving recyclability, increasing recycled content, investing in recycling infrastructure, and collaborating with suppliers and industry partners.
- In FY2026, 81.1% of global private-brand plastic packaging was designed for recycling and 64.3% of global private-brand packaging was recyclable, reusable, or industrially compostable.
- Our reported private brand virgin plastic packaging was 4.12% above the FY2021 baseline in FY2026, rather than achieving the 15% reduction goal. However, the rate of increase declined over the past three years, while virgin plastic packaging intensity—measured by weight per net sales dollar —has continued to decrease the past three years.
- Post-consumer recycled content increased to an estimated 12.0% of North America private brand plastic packaging and 10.7% globally, compared with 8.2% and 7.6%, respectively, in FY2025.
- Packaging decisions continue to balance waste reduction with product protection, food safety, cost, regulatory requirements, recycled material availability, supplier capabilities, and evolving packaging technologies.
Enhancing Product Circularity
Reducing product waste through innovation, product refurbishment, and material reuse.
- Walmart extends product life through refill, reuse, resale, refurbishment, repair, trade-in, donation, and recycling pathways.
- Programs include Resold at Walmart, Walmart Trade In, ecoATM kiosks, technology repair services, and recovery pathways for returned merchandise.
- Walmart also supports broader circular systems through investments in recycling infrastructure, research, and innovation, including grants supporting textile circularity and materials recovery.
