IDFA salutes safety at nine Kroger dairy plants
The IDFA awarded the plants with its Dairy Industry Safety Recognition Awards and Achievement Certificates. The honor is designed to recognize dairy operations that demonstrate an effort to maximizing safety practices and reducing accidents.
Commitment to safety
Erin Sharp, Kroger’s group vice president of manufacturing, said the company considers safety a top priority.
"Kroger is committed to continually improving the overall safety of our associates, and we are so proud of these nine facilities for their hard work to deliver a safe work environment for all employees," she said. "We appreciate the IDFA's recognition, which highlights our objective to be the safest company in America."
Safety record
According to Kroger representatives, the firm has managed to pare down its overall accident rate by 76.3% since 1995. Last year, nearly 800 retail locations, nine plants and a distribution center went without a single recorded accident.
Additionally, Kroger's manufacturing division in 2012 received an OSHA Recordable Accident rating of 1.4 FTE, said to be the lowest in company history.
The Kroger dairy plants recognized by the IDFA this year include facilities in Indianapolis; Murfreesboro, TN; Denver; Crawfordsville, IN; Newark, OH; Tolleson, AZLynchburg, VA; and Fort Worth, TX.
This year marks the 10th that the IDFA has sponsored the awards.
With 2,418 supermarkets and department retail stores employing 343,000 workers, Kroger ranks among the world’s largest retailers. Its stores include Kroger, Ciy Market, Jay C, Food 4 Less, Ralph’s and Smith’s; it also operates 37 food processing plants, and a number of specialty retailers.
