Countdown’s director of property Matt Grainger. “The focus on cool chain integrity also continues with produce arriving on temperature-controlled trucks… to make sure different fruit and vegetables are at the exact right temperature to maintain their freshness as they make their way from our growers to our stores,” Grainger told Inside Retail. “The new [Christchurch Fresh Distribution Centre] has been designed to be built to a state-of-the-art standard.” The focus on temperature control has the added benefit of reducing food waste, according to Grainger, so more product will arrive in stores, ready to sell. According to Love Food, Hate Waste, a campaign launched to help solve the issue of food waste, New Zealand homes throw away 157,398 tonnes of food each year – an issue that costs Kiwis $117 billion a year. “Food waste is a massive issue in New Zealand, and while we can all make changes at a household level, Countdown has the opportunity to make a difference on a much larger scale by optimising our processes and equipment right across the supply chain,” Grainger said. Guided by a Green Star And, as with many of parent-company Woolworths’ recent builds in Australia, the Rolleston DC is designed from the ground up to be environmentally sustainable.  For example, last year Woolworths started construction of a 75,000sqm distribution centre in Western Sydney incorporating 9,500 solar panels which will generate 5,500mWh of energy each year – the equivalent of 880 households of energy consumption.  “The steps we take to become a more sustainable business today will help create a better tomorrow for generations to come,” said Woolworths’ chief executive Brad Banducci. The business has also entered into a nine-year renewable energy deal with a South Australian wind and solar farm which will generate 100,000mWh of energy for the business. The new distribution centre in Rolleston is aiming at a Green Star rating of 4, as set out by the New Zealand Green Building Council, with future builds aiming for 5 stars. In order to achieve this, the building will integrate solar power, harvest rainwater and use low-energy condensers throughout. The building’s sustainable aspects are tied to Countdown’s 2025 Sustainability Plan, which outlines the business’ aim to cut emissions and develop more sustainable and efficient buildings moving forward. “Meeting a Green Star standard is certainly not easy as a typical build, but it’s an investment that our business is willing to make to drive meaningful change for our environment,” Grainger said. “The standards are comprehensive and require us to take a holistic, innovative approach across our design, construction and operations of [the new DC] to ensure that we’re reducing waste, being as energy efficient as possible, and building a facility that’s good for the environment and for our people.” The work Countdown is putting in to lower the carbon footprint across its network is planned to reduce its emissions by 63 per cent by 2030 when compared to a 2015 baseline.