Winners of the Inaugural Retail Sustainability Excellence Awards Announced

Retail Sustainability Leaders Recognized at Inaugural Awards Gala

TORONTO, October 28, 2026: From circular packaging and recycled content to low-carbon logistics and supply chain transparency, retailers and consumer brands across North America are proving that sustainable retail is scalable retail. Tonight, the industry came together to honour the organizations leading the way. Retail Council of Canada (RCC) proudly announced the 13 winners of the inaugural Retail Sustainability Excellence Awards at the Awards Gala Dinner, held at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre following RCC’s Retail Sustainability Conference.

“The breadth and quality of this year’s winners is remarkable. These organizations are proud of their results, their programs, and the people driving change inside their businesses, and it shows in the work they have done,” said Kim Furlong, President and CEO, Retail Council of Canada.

The inaugural Retail Sustainability Excellence Awards winners are:

• Innovative Sustainable Product and Packaging Design
  • Cascades LithoURB
  • Danone Canada “6-to-1” Packaging Innovation Project
• Recycled Content Adoption
  • Canadian Tire Corporation Motomaster Oil Pan — Transitioning to Canadian Manufacturing with Post-Consumer Recycled Content
  • Reynolds Consumer Products Canada Inc. Ahead of the Curve: Bringing 30% Recycled Content to Canada’s Waste Bag Category
• Reuse, Refill and Take-Back Program
  • IKEA Canada Scaling Circularity Through Furniture Sell-back and Resale
• Back-of-Store Circularity and Operational Waste Diversion or Reduction
  • Ben & Florentine From Crust to Customer Value
• Data, Transparency and Traceability Innovation
  • Henkel Canada Corporation End-to-End Transparency
• Energy and Facilities Decarbonization Impact
  • Bimbo Canada Rising to the Climate Challenge: Baking a Lower-Carbon Future
  • Sobeys Inc. Refrigeration Decarbonization Across Our Store Network
• Low-Carbon Logistics and Fleet Transition
  • Tim Hortons Distribution Fleet Electrification & Charging Infrastructure
• PRO Excellence: Most Improved Recycling Performance and Transparency
  • Éco Entreprises Québec From System Transformation to Measurable Performance Improvement: Québec’s Modernized EPR Curbside Recycling System
• Supply Chain Impact
  • Restaurant Brands International (RBI)
• Responsible Sourcing & Supply Chain Sustainability
• Community Impact
  • L’Oréal Canada “WITH and FOR”: A 360° Indigenous Reconciliation Strategy

The inaugural program drew submissions from retailers, consumer brands, quick-service restaurants, and producer responsibility organizations across North America. Fifty-eight finalists across ten categories were selected by an independent judging panel of retail and sustainability professionals.

Furlong added: “I also want to extend my sincere congratulations to the inaugural Sustainability Leaders of the Year: Kathleen McLaughlin, Executive Vice President and Chief Sustainability Officer at Walmart Inc., who was recognized in the Retail category, and Fisk Johnson, Chairman and CEO of SC Johnson, who was recognized in the CPG category. They have each advanced measurable environmental progress well beyond their own organizations, and we are proud to honour them.”

About the Retail Sustainability Excellence Awards

The Retail Sustainability Excellence Awards, presented by Retail Council of Canada, recognize best-in-class sustainability initiatives across retailers, brand owners, and the broader supply chain. Aligned with the core themes of the RCC Retail Sustainability Conference, ten categories span circular economy, EPR performance, data and transparency, and decarbonization. Winners were selected by an independent jury of retail and sustainability professionals for credibility, scalability, and measurable impact demonstrated in 2025. For a full list of this year’s winners and award categories, visit rccretailsustainability.ca/awards.

About Retail Council of Canada

Retail is Canada’s largest private-sector employer with over 2.3 million Canadians working in our industry. This sector is a major economic contributor, generating more than $101 billion annually in wages and employee benefits. In 2025, core retail sales (excluding vehicles and gasoline) exceeded $532 billion.

Retail Council of Canada (RCC) members account for more than two thirds of these core retail sales and 95 per cent of the grocery market. Our membership extends across the country, embracing over 65,000 storefronts in diverse formats such as department, grocery, specialty, discount, independent retailers, online merchants, and quick service restaurants.

As the Voice of Retail™ in Canada, RCC, a not-for-profit, industry-funded association, proudly represents retail businesses of all sizes, from small independents to large national chains, in communities nationwide. retailcouncil.org.