Walmart Pilots Solution That Keeps Produce Fresh During Transport

Walmart is working with Indian AgriTech startup GreenPod Labs to pilot a solution that aims to keep produce fresh during as it moves through the supply chain.

The solution may enable the retailer to source fresh produce from new countries of origin, Kyle Carlyle, vice president, sourcing and surety of supply at Walmart, wrote in a Monday (Feb. 10) blog post.

“All this serves a greater goal: augmenting the supply chain and creating more sustainable alternatives for customers everywhere,” Carlyle wrote.

GreenPod slows the ripening of fruit by activating the natural defense mechanisms of fruits and vegetables and slowing the rate of microbe growth with the company’s small sachets filled with plant extracts, according to the post.

To test this solution, GreenPod is supplying sachets from India that will be applied to mangoes in Peru, which will then be shipped to the U.S., the post said.

Walmart will work with the University of California Davis to evaluate the efficiency of this solution in multiple environments, per the post.

“Working with a global player like Walmart revalidates the importance of our work in reducing fruits and vegetables post-harvest losses and quality degradation,” GreenPod Labs CEO Deepak Rajmohan said in the post. “It’s been a great learning experience to interact with the sourcing and innovation team to understand the current challenges.”

Walmart and GreenPod Labs met at the Walmart Growth Summit in India in 2024, according to the post.

The retailer concluded that three-day event in February 2024, saying the event was designed to strengthen its partnerships and support India’s economic growth.

More than 100 associates from Walmart and Sam’s Club met with sellers and innovators to discuss potential future partnerships. Walmart aims to source $10 billion in goods from India each year by 2027, the retailer said at the time.

Walmart maintains a commanding lead in the grocery category compared to its rival, Amazon, according to the PYMNTS Intelligence report, “Walmart’s Aggressive eCommerce Strategy Aimed at Amazon’s Best Customers.”

The report found that Walmart captured a 20.2% share of consumer spend in the food and beverage category in the second quarter of 2024, compared to Amazon’s 2.7%.