Amazon has outlined its systematic approach to minimizing waste across its operations, emphasizing prevention, reduction, reuse, recycling, and composting. The company employs data analytics to identify high-impact opportunities and implements a structured framework to manage materials responsibly.
“At Amazon, we see waste as a defect to be eliminated or reduced unless it’s absolutely necessary,” said Priscilla Okyere, Head of Waste and Circular Solutions at Amazon. “By finding ways to reuse materials instead of throwing them away, we’re helping the environment while also making smart business decisions. We use data to identify where we can make the biggest impact, then either improve existing solutions or create new ones from scratch.”
The strategy includes preventing waste through online shopping features such as AI-generated customer review summaries and size recommendations that help reduce returns. In collaboration with the app “Too Good To Go,” Whole Foods Market diverted 636,000 meals from going to waste in 2024.
Amazon has replaced wood pallets with reusable carts in fulfillment centers, avoiding the use of 85 million pallets last year. Unused assets are repurposed or donated; for instance, Fundación Altius received supplies following floods in Valencia.
In North America, Amazon MGM Studios launched a Reusable Asset Hub for production items like electronics and furniture. Nearly 15 productions have utilized this resource so far.
Recycling efforts include partnerships with RafCycle for adhesive label backing recycling and increasing material recycling by up to 50% in Japan by converting it into toilet paper. Additionally, investments in Glacier’s AI robotics sortation aim to optimize recycling processes.
Oscar Sort is being piloted at select Amazon Fresh stores to enhance sorting accuracy. Since its launch in 2023, it improved recycling accuracy by 9% and composting accuracy by 8%.
For waste that cannot be prevented or recycled effectively, energy conversion through incineration is considered before resorting to landfills.
