United States Cold Storage, Divert Develop Recycling Program for Renewable Energy

United States Cold Storage (USCS) and Divert, Inc. partnered on an innovative recycling program that processes food and beverage products that can’t be sold or donated into renewable energy and soil amendment. 

“This collaboration represents a meaningful step in advancing our sustainability objectives by reducing environmental impact, strengthening compliance, and driving greater efficiencies across our operations,” says Sara Cook, sustainable development manager, United States Cold Storage. “We are proud to collaborate with Divert, a company that shares our commitment to innovation and environmental stewardship, and we look forward to building a long-standing relationship." 

“Creating reliable and flexible diversion pathways to support our customers across the food value chain represents a massive opportunity to drive environmental and operational impact,” says Andrew Johnston, VP, GM, industrials, Divert. “Our collaboration with USCS demonstrates how the cold storage industry can turn a challenge into a value-generating solution—meeting compliance requirements, reducing emissions, and unlocking positive ESG and business outcomes.” 

Key takeaways:
 

·        As a part of this program, unsold and non-donatable food and beverage products from USCS’ California locations are brought to Divert’s Integrated Diversion & Energy Facility in Turlock, Calif.

·        The facility leverages Divert's proprietary depackaging and anaerobic digestion solutions to then securely process the material into carbon-negative renewable energy and nutrient-rich soil amendments. In doing so, the process prevents the material from going to landfill, where it would otherwise emit harmful greenhouse gases.