Trader Joe's Agrees to Settlement With EPA Over Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Yesterday, Trader Joe's, the popular California-based company, was the third supermarket retailer (after Safeway and Costco) in recent years to agree to put funds towards reducing refrigerator coolant leaks that deplete the ozone layer and contribute to global warming. The Los Angeles Times reports the grocery retailer will spend about $2 million to correct the error and pay an additional "$500,000 civil penalty under a consent decree with the Justice Department and the Environmental Protection Agency that was filed Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for Northern California." 

Total Retail's Take: The EPA has been cracking down the last few years on supermarkets, as it should be. In this particular case, it seems like a case of poor management and record keeping on Trader Joe's part. Now, after a pretty hefty penalty and being called out in the media for its disorganized store-to-store maintenance, Trader Joe's has released a statement that it's looking forward to cooperating with the EPA in its mission to reduce air pollution. A stumble for the supermarket chain, but not a fall.