Wawa – Diane Motel – 2023

Goals

One of Wawa’s priority focus areas as a purpose-driven company is food insecurity and food waste. Diane Motel was tasked with providing data and analysis linking food insecurity and social determinants to better understand the need in Wawa’s current and future markets. Diane Motel was tasked with identifying opportunities to create educational materials on food waste. 

Solutions

Diane engaged with key stakeholders and resources to produce data on food insecurity and social determinants in Wawa’s current and future markets. In addition to gathering data, a heat map was developed to indicate areas where the need is greater.

To determine the best approaches to tackling operational food waste objectives, Diane identified methods of employee food waste education and created a materiality assessment comparing ease of implementation, cost, and impact. Utilizing both this assessment and a Theory of Change document, Diane determined that enlisting Food Waste Champions at each store could be considered.

Potential Impact

By understanding and identifying the populations and geographies most at risk for food insecurity within Wawa’s current and future communities, it will allow Wawa to continue to provide support in the communities they serve now and in the future. By implementing the Associate Education Toolkit, Wawa could increase employee engagement, reduce food waste, and make a positive impact on the communities it serves.