Mayor Rahm Emanuel joined Whole Foods Market to open the company’s new 140,000 square foot distribution center in the Pullman neighborhood. The new distribution center allows the natural and organic grocer to better serve its 26 Chicagoland locations as well as an additional 34 locations across the Midwest and Eastern Canada. Sitting on 16.5 acres in the historic Pullman neighborhood, the new distribution center features a fresh salad bar, outdoor grilling space and patio, and an equipped exercise room for Team Members to enjoy. The facility employs 100 Team Members, who moved from the company’s previous 5-acre facility in Munster, Indiana.

The newly-designed facility also features environmental improvements. Approximately 20 percent more electrically efficient, the new Whole Foods Market distribution center saves more than 1.3 million kilowatts per year and more than $150,000 annually due to measures such as natural refrigerants, occupancy light sensors, high-efficiency interior and exterior lighting, thermosiphon oil cooling, and redistribution of refrigeration waste to heat floors. With increased access to major transportation arteries, the new distribution center allows Whole Foods Market stores to replenish products faster, ensuring shoppers’ favorite foods are always available. The facility is expected to move an average of 200,000 cases each week to Whole Foods Market locations in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska and Iowa, and the Canadian province of Ontario.