Kellanova to make Cheez-It crackers with regenerative wheat for East Coast grocery stores in unique pilot

Dive Brief:

• The owner of East Coast grocery chains Food Lion, Stop & Shop and Giant Food is entering a unique partnership with snacking giant Kellanova to accelerate regenerative agriculture in the wheat used to make Cheez-It crackers.
• Ahold Delhaize USA said Tuesday it will invest alongside Kellanova and grain cooperative Bartlett to support North Carolina wheat farmers adopt regenerative practices that improve soil health and lower greenhouse gas emissions.
• The regeneratively-grown wheat from these farms will be milled alongside conventional grain at a Bartlett facility and manufactured into Cheez-It and Club crackers, which will then be sold at Ahold Delhaize’s U.S. brands starting in 2025.

Dive Insight:

The partnership between Ahold Delhaize, Kellanova and Bartlett brings together major stakeholders across the food supply chain to advance sustainability from farm field to grocery store shelf.

Around 95% of Ahold Delhaize’s climate footprint comes from its suppliers, making collaboration a key part of the grocer’s goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Ahold Delhaize aims to slash emissions tied to agricultural operations by 30% before the end of the decade.

“An important step in this journey is reducing Scope 3 carbon emissions, which requires partnerships like this one with Kellanova and Bartlett,” JJ Fleeman, CEO of Ahold Delhaize USA, said in a statement. “We’re excited to be a part of this collaboration as we focus on our Scope 3 commitments.”

Production under the pilot program is set to kick off this summer. The project will focus on farmers who have already implemented regenerative agriculture practices and can help other growers with the transition.

The pilot will measure, report and verify climate impacts of the practices using Arva Intelligence’s technology platform CropForce, according to a release. The data will be used to inform Ahold Delhaize’s sustainability initiatives down the line.

“Not only will this help us on our race to Net Zero, but the data will help us to chart our future path for Scope 3 collaborations,” Marc Stolzman, chief sustainability officer for Ahold Delhaize USA, said in a statement.