GRAND RAPIDS, MI - But, baby it’s cold outside! These words are no hindrance for grocery chain Meijer as it recently announced it is deploying two of its first all-electric semitrucks outside of California, tracking the performance of its Freightliner eCascadia vehicles in a cold weather environment as part of a grant from the United States Department of Energy.
"Our company's earliest beginnings were marked by doing what's right while keeping an eye toward innovation. That philosophy still guides us today and is exemplified by our company's commitment to lessening our carbon footprint," Meijer President and Chief Executive Officer Rick Keyes said. "We're excited to continue our longstanding partnership with Freightliner to pave a sustainable future for the industry."
The two semis will operate out of the retailer's Lansing Distribution Center and will make multiple deliveries daily to Meijer supercenters within a 200-mile trip range of the distribution center. The grocer received the battery electric semitrucks earlier this month and celebrated their inaugural delivery last week with a more than 44,000 lbs food donation to Gleaners Community Food Bank in Detroit.
According to a press release, Freightliner's new battery electric eCascadia truck is the zero-emission version of the industry-leading Cascadia and is ideally suited for short-haul routes that allow for depot-based charging.
"Through this partnership, we can help accelerate the industry's transformation to electrification by applying valuable insights from data collected and real-world applications in a cold climate environment and make a meaningful difference when it comes to reducing greenhouse gas emissions," said Mike Graham, Senior Vice President of Supply Chain and Manufacturing for Meijer. "We're pleased to work with Freightliner to further put the eCascadia tractors into real-world applications outside of southern California as we look for solutions to achieve zero emissions."
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