Bimbo Bakeries USA, Inc. (BBU) announced that it has recently joined the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Green Power Partnership. The Green Power Partnership, a voluntary program with over 1,700 partner organizations, encourages companies to use green power to reduce the environmental impacts associated with conventional electricity use. BBU uses nearly 418 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of green power annually, which is enough green power to meet 100 percent of the organization's electricity use. BBU is 41st on the EPA’s National Top 100 List of the largest green power users from the Green Power Partnership.

“As the largest commercial bakery in the U.S, we know how important it is to be a leader in sustainability practices,” said Ramon Rivera, senior vice president, operations at Bimbo Bakeries USA. “We are proud and honored to join the EPA’s Green Power Partnership as we work to further reduce our organization's emissions footprint.”

By moving the needle in the voluntary green power market, BBU and other Green Power Partners are helping to reduce the negative health impacts of air emissions including those related to ozone, fine particles, acid rain, and regional haze.

“EPA applauds the leading organizations in the Green Power Partnership’s Top Partner Rankings for their notable commitment to expanding their use of green power and protecting the environment,” said James Critchfield, program manager of EPA's Green Power Partnership.

In 2018, Grupo Bimbo signed a virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA) with Invenergy, North America’s leading, privately-held developer, owner, and operator of sustainable energy solutions. The agreement provides for 100 megawatts (MW) of wind energy generated at the Santa Rita East Wind Energy Center. Located in Texas, the 302.4 MW Santa Rita East Wind Energy Center is majority-owned by AEP Renewables (under the name Santa Rita East Wind Energy LLC). Grupo Bimbo’s offtake from the wind farm is equal to 100 percent of the energy used in the company’s operations and helps offset approximately 260,000 tons of CO₂ emissions per year.

In addition to being a Green Power Partner, BBU has been recognized as an EPA ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year for four consecutive years. In 2020, the company’s bakeries in Escondido, CA and Denver, CO were awarded Food Processing Magazine’s “Green Plant of the Year” and “Bronze Environmental Achievement Award,” respectively.

For more about Bimbo Bakeries USA, see "Bimbo Bakehouse brings comprehensive solutions to foodservice and the in-store bakery" on the SF&WB website, or "Nourishing the World," the cover story for the April 2021 issue of the SF&WB eMagazine.