Publix gets

poor marks for efforts to prevent food waste in its stores, ranking it next to last out of the country’s 10 biggest grocery chains.

Publix got poor marks this week for efforts to prevent food waste in its stores, ranking it next to last out of the country’s 10 biggest grocery chains.

The Center for Biological Diversity and the Ugly Fruit and Veggie Campaign said Publix got a ‘D’ grade among the country’s 10 biggest grocery chains, falling behind Walmart at number one and ahead of only Aldi U.S.

Ahold Delhaize and Kroger took the other tops spots on the list while Costco, Publix and Aldi were at the bottom.

A spokeswoman for the Center for Biological Diversity said the company has made strides with recycling and seafood programs but releases little other data when it comes to food waste. Publix did not give more data to the groups compiling the report and also did not respond to the Orlando Sentinel with a request for comment.

“While it’s possible that some stores are doing more than what was made publicly available, without tracking their total food waste and publicly reporting that data it’s impossible to gauge the success of those efforts,” said Jennifer Molidor, senior food campaigner for the Center for Biological Diversity.

Lakeland-based Publix recycled about 270,000 tons of materials last year and has worked with suppliers to cut down on packaging, according to its sustainability website.

Publix said it diverted “more than 30,000 tons of food waste byproducts from our manufacturing plants and scraps from our Bakery production which is processed into animal feed.”

It also has solar panels on some buildings and electric car charging stations. Other sustainability programs as Publix include working with local farmers and donating excess food.

But the group claims Publix still isn't going far enough and the groups are pushing it to make zerowaste by 2025 commitments like other grocers have, Molidor said.