Youth in superhero cape boosts Kroger’s Zero Hunger | Zero Waste program

Kroger’s Zero Hunger | Zero Waste initiative is noteworthy on many fronts. Recognizing that 40% of the food grown in the U.S. is thrown away, Kroger’s has set 2025 as the year by which it will eliminate food waste and hunger in its communities. Getting the word out about the program has involved all forms of media, including talks at conferences and events by company leaders and other employees.

Although speeches and PowerPoint decks provide insight into the campaign, Kroger communicators recognized that a video could present data along with the personality, excitement and energy behind the ambitious goal. The resulting video—also shared among associates—has earned the top prize in the “Organization Overview” category of PR Daily’s Video & Visual Awards.

To effectively provide an overview of the program and its accomplishments to date, the team settled on the idea of heroes (given that advocates are known as “Zero Heroes”). Armed with footage shot by company cinematographers over the course of the year, the script was developed with a youth actor serving as the video’s anchor.

Wearing a yellow cape bearing the Zero Hunger | Zero Waste logo, the actor mingles with associates and cavorts around seven Cincinnati locations (all in a single day). Large, bold typography displays relevant data and statistics as an upbeat music track sets the pace for the video.

On Kroger’s Vimeo page, the video has earned more than 61,000 views. It has also been viewed repeatedly on the company intranet and weekly associate email, and was included as a segment on the CEO’s quarterly broadcast video, which averages 27,000 views. The video was also shared with campaign advocates.

For producing an upbeat, informative and inspiring video, congratulations to Chris Willig, Andrew Brown, Jonathan Marasco, Nick Carlisle, Maggie Hardison and Jeremy Browe.