Climate Change Data

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

• Customers
• Employees
• Communities
• Environment
• Shareholders

Environmental Achievements

• Recycled more than two million tons of cardboard since 2008 (equivalent to nearly 35 million trees saved).
• Recycled approximately 28,000 tons of mixed paper.
• Recycled and repurposed more than 10,000 tons of plastic film.
• Reduced energy use in stores by 19% since 2016 through LED lighting.
• Reduced energy usage in stores by 14% on average through Energy Management Systems.
• Implemented a virtually-zero waste construction program.

Social Achievements

• Dollar General’s training and development program named #1 worldwide by Training magazine for the second consecutive year.
• Invested more than 1.7 million training hours in employees in FY 2019.
• 75% of store managers promoted from within.
• More than doubled its workforce between 2008 and 2020.
• Dollar General Literacy Foundation invested more than $13.8 million in FY 2019.
• Raised more than $25 million to support St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
• Awarded $2 million to Save the Children’s coronavirus response efforts.

Governance Achievements

• 25% of Dollar General’s Board of Directors is female (as of April 1, 2020).
• Received a high-ranking score of 90 on the Corporate Equality Index (CEI) in 2019.
• Implemented stock ownership guidelines for senior officers and directors.
• Prohibits executive officers and directors from hedging stock ownership or pledging securities as collateral.

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

• Reducing or eliminating certain high-priority chemicals in private label products.
• Maintaining sustainable practices across a large and growing retail network.

Mitigation Strategies

• New chemical policy to urge suppliers to use safer alternatives and eliminate certain chemicals by December 2022.
• Initiatives to enhance information collection regarding chemical composition of products.
• Cardboard backhauling, mixed paper recycling, plastic film recycling programs.
• Energy-efficient lighting, HVAC systems, and coolers/freezers.
• Sustainable building practices in new stores and distribution centers.

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: Annual audits by an independent third-party auditing firm

Responsible Procurement

• Code of Business Conduct and Ethics
• Workplace conditions expectations
• Chemical policy

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Sustainable Products & Innovation

• DG Home™ Premium Plate products made of compostable sugarcane and bamboo pulp.

Awards & Recognition

• Training magazine's #1 training and development program (2 years in a row)
• Fortune's 2020 list of World's Most Admired Companies
• PWM Best of the Best Employers List for Top LGBTQ+ Friendly Companies

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

• Environmental
• Social
• Governance

Environmental Achievements

• Converted over 99% of interior store lighting, 79% of exterior store lighting, and 74% of exterior store signage to LED, resulting in a 12.7% energy reduction compared to fluorescent lighting.
• Added VFDs in more than 1,200 stores, resulting in approximately 7% energy use reduction.
• Wind energy powered 982 stores in Texas.
• Recycled more than 2.8 million tons of cardboard.
• Recycled over 35,000 tons of mixed paper since 2010.
• Achieved a landfill diversion rate of almost 62% in 2022.
• Diverted more than 17,000 tons of expired dairy waste from landfills.

Social Achievements

• Launched SMFlex, a new scheduling program that allows store managers more flexibility.
• Launched a new educational benefits platform providing full-time employees access to employer-paid, full-tuition-covered degree programs.
• Dollar General Literacy Foundation awarded more than $16.6M to nonprofit organizations, schools and libraries.
• Donated over $1 million to Feeding America and its affiliates.
• Raised more than $32.8 million to support St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
• Planted more than 75,000 trees.
• Provided in-kind and monetary donations totaling over $500,000 to the American Red Cross.

Governance Achievements

• Continued focused shareholder engagement efforts regarding ESG matters, inviting shareholders representing over 61% of outstanding shares to discuss their perspectives.
• Established three standing committees comprised solely of independent directors: Nominating, Governance and Corporate Responsibility, Audit and Compensation.
• Implemented significant stock ownership guidelines for senior officers and directors.

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

• Overall progress in GHG emissions reduction was impacted by unusually warm summer weather and significant winter storms, resulting in increased energy needs and consumption.

Mitigation Strategies

• Engaged a third-party consultant to help build an energy roadmap and strategy designed to meet or exceed energy reduction goals.

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: Annual audits by an independent third-party firm for direct import factories.

Responsible Procurement

• Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, Master Supplier Agreement outlining requirements for vendors and their factories.

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks

• Increased energy needs due to extreme weather.

Transition Risks

• Not disclosed

Opportunities

• Not disclosed

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: SASB

Certifications: ISO 5001

Third-party Assurance: Not disclosed

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• Not disclosed

Our Serving Others platform supports and aligns most closely with seven UN SDGs.

Sustainable Products & Innovation

• Refrigerated merchandiser using a natural refrigerant.

Awards & Recognition

• World’s Most Admired Companies by Fortune (2020)
• America’s most patriotic brands by Brand Keys
• U.S. Veterans Magazine’s Top Veteran-Friendly Companies List for 8 consecutive years
• Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 2022 Corporate Equality Index for LGBTQI+ workplace inclusion efforts