Bimbo Bakeries USA is proud to announce that it has received the 2019 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in recognition of its company-wide commitment to energy management strategy and leadership in the baking industry. The company's accomplishments were recognized by the EPA and the U.S. Department of Energy at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. on April 11, 2019.

''Sustainability is built into our company's purpose - building a sustainable, highly productive and deeply humane company,'' said Ramon Rivera, Senior Vice President, Supply Chain, Bimbo Bakeries USA. ''We are honored to be named an ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year for the second year in a row and are incredibly proud that our efforts have again been recognized by the EPA.''

''I applaud the 2019 ENERGY STAR Award Winners,'' said EPA Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation Bill Wehrum. ''Their innovation and leadership enhance America's economic competitiveness. Reducing costly energy waste improves air quality and public health while protecting the environment.''

Key accomplishments of Bimbo Bakeries USA in 2018 include:

• Earned ENERGY STAR certification for superior energy efficiency at 14 facilities across the country.
• Grupo Bimbo joined RE100 and committed to using 100 percent renewable energy for its electricity across all countries where it operates by 2025.
• Entered into a VPPA with Invenergy to develop a wind farm to produce the equivalent of 100 percent of the company's electrical energy. The renewable energy wind farm is scheduled to be completed at the end of 2019.
• Installed a 1MW solar array at its Escondido, California bakery, which produces up to 30 percent of the electrical energy from the bakery.
• Upgraded facility lighting to LED to reduce lighting electrical consumption by more than 50 percent.

The ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year award recognizes ENERGY STAR partner businesses and organizations in good standing that demonstrate superior leadership, innovation and commitment to environmental protection through energy efficiency and ENERGY STAR.

For a complete list of 2019 winners and more information about ENERGY STAR's awards program, visit energystar.gov/awardwinners.

About Bimbo Bakeries USA

Bimbo Bakeries USA (BBU) is a leader in the baking industry, known for its category-leading brands, innovative products, freshness and quality. Our team of 20,000 U.S. associates operates more than 50 manufacturing locations in the United States. Over 11,000 distribution routes deliver our leading brands, such as Arnold®, Artesano®, Ball Park®, Bimbo®, Boboli®, Brownberry®, Entenmann's®, Eureka!®, Little Bites®, Marinela®, Oroweat®, Sara Lee®, Stroehmann®and Thomas'®. BBU is owned by Mexico's Grupo Bimbo, S.A.B. de C.V., the world's largest baking company, with operations in 32 countries.

About ENERGY STAR

ENERGY STAR® is the government-backed symbol for energy efficiency, providing simple, credible and unbiased information that consumers and businesses rely on to make well-informed decisions. Thousands of industrial, commercial, utility, state and local organizations—including more than 40 percent of the Fortune 500®—rely on their partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to deliver cost-saving energy efficiency solutions. Since 1992, ENERGY STAR and its partners helped save American families and businesses nearly 4 trillion kilowatt-hours of electricity and achieve over 3 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas reductions. In 2017 alone, ENERGY STAR and its partners helped Americans avoid $30 billion in energy costs. More background information about ENERGY STAR can be found at energystar.gov/about and energystar.gov/numbers.