Dive Brief:

• Giant Food announced on Thursday it has added two fully electric vehicles from Motiv Power Systems to its fleet of 128 delivery vehicles. 
• The Mid-Atlantic grocer said it plans to transition more of its vehicles to fully electric over the “next several years.”
• Giant Food’s addition of electric delivery vehicles ties into the company's sustainability efforts and comes at a time when many retailers are making their delivery fleets more environmentally friendly.

Dive Insight:

Giant Food’s two fully electric vehicles can traverse 105 miles on a single charge and save drivers time by no longer requiring fuel stops while they make deliveries, according to the press release. 

The vehicles are expected to displace more than 210,000 gallons of petroleum and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 63% during their lifetime.

In addition to being better for the environment, Giant Food said the vehicles are quieter, and noted they have the same amount of storage capacity as the other vehicles in the grocer’s delivery fleet. 

The Mid-Atlantic grocery chain, which runs 164 supermarkets in Virginia, Maryland, Delaware and Washington, D.C., used grant funding that was managed by the Maryland Energy Administration for the deployment. The funding came from a program that aims to make the transportation sector greener in Maryland. 

Giant Food’s latest initiative aligns with the sustainability goals of its parent company, Ahold Delhaize. Last fall, the Dutch company moved up its goal of reaching net-zero carbon emissions across its own operations by 2040 — 10 years earlier than previously targeted. Ahold Delhaize has also pledged to become a net-zero business across its entire supply chain, products and services by 2050.

Other grocers are also taking the route of electric delivery vehicles. In April, Seattle-area food retailer Town & Country Markets said it launched an all-electric fleet of three refrigerated vans to deliver groceries from five of its six locations.

Kroger and Walmart have begun testing electric, autonomous vehicles, while Albertsons and ShopRite have tested electric, battery-powered vehicles from Tortoise for short delivery distances and lighter orders. 

Last June, Albertsons said it had procured its first zero-emission, electric-powered Class 8 trucks for distribution.