Walmart and Avery Dennison have announced a new innovation to advance the use of radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology in fresh categories previously not possible.
“Addressing food waste and ensuring freshness are more important than ever for consumers, producers, and retailers,” says Avery Dennison. “This first-to-market solution is set to transform inventory processes and enhance both associate and customer experiences across fresh departments—particularly bakery, meat, and deli.”
Looking to help develop a solution to a longstanding industry challenge of using RFID technology in high-moisture, cold environments, like meat cases, Walmart teamed with Avery Dennison to create and test a sensor technology that brings RFID-enabled labels to the meat department. By using Avery Dennison’s RFID solutions in meat, along with bakery and the deli department, Avery Dennison says that Walmart associates can track inventory faster and more accurately, making sure products stay stocked and ready when customers want them. With digital use-by dates right at their fingertips, associates can also rotate products more efficiently and make smarter markdown decisions, helping cut down on unsold food.
“We believe technology should make things easier for both our associates and our customers,” says Christyn Keef, VP of front end transformation for Walmart U.S. “By cutting down on manual work, we’re giving our associates more time to focus on what really matters—helping our customers.”
The collaboration also ties nicely with Walmart’s broader sustainability goals, including its aim to cut global operational food loss and waste intensity in half by 2030. By introducing automated item-level identification, Avery Dennison says Walmart is transforming how fresh food is managed, making operations smarter, faster and more sustainable. PW
