The region's newest supermarket is Countdown’s greenest store to date.
The 3450 square metre supermarket on Salisbury Rd has been in construction since September last year and aims to be New Zealand’s very first Green Star supermarket.
The internationally recognised sustainability rating system takes into account the design, construction, and operation of buildings.
MP Rachel Boyack, who spoke at the opening, says the supermarket is an incredible achievement for the area.
“Green Star ratings go from 1 to 6 and this store is going to be a 4. That’s something to really be acknowledged as we need to reduce our emissions across New Zealand.”
Countdown aims to push that rating to a 6 by 2025.
To help reduce carbon emissions, every fridge and freezer has a glass door. According to Countdown, 10 doors save enough energy to power a New Zealand home for a year and save Co2 emissions equivalent to taking three cars off our roads for a year. They also mean warmer aisles for shoppers.
Other green features include solar panels on the roof, LED lighting, EV charging points for customers’ cars, digital shelf labels to reduce paper use, an electric truck for the delivery of online orders and water-saving taps.
The instore pharmacy will dispense free prescriptions and the online service has a drive-thru pick-up point to make the experience easier for customers.
Countdown’s general manager of property, Matthew Grainger, says construction of the project “was spot on time”.
Tasman Mayor Tim King says the supermarket is an “investment in the people of the region” with over 100 staff, whether they are part time, after school, holiday or career workers.
