NASRC Releases 2021 Annual Report

Naturally Better Together
Announcing NASRC's 2021 Annual Report

NASRC is proud to release our 2021 Annual Report, Naturally Better Together, which summarizes our collective progress to eliminate the barriers to natural refrigerants in supermarkets. 2021 was filled with global uncertainty, but together with our members and partners, we made unprecedented progress to:

• Offset first costs of natural refrigerant technologies

• Increase natural refrigerant technology options

• Ensure service workforce readiness

• Increase awareness and support for the transition away from HFCs

We hope you take a moment to celebrate our shared accomplishments towards building a naturally better future for supermarket refrigeration. None of this would be possible without your support.

Want to support our work further?

Consider making a tax-deductible donation to NASRC.

NASRC Releases NEW Policy Resources!

Building Your Policy Toolbox
New NASRC Resources

2022 marks the start of new HFC regulatory requirements at the state and federals levels. We're pleased to announce TWO new resources to help our members and partners stay up-to-date of on the latest policy information:

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HFC Policies & Refrigerant Regulations by State

Amidst increasing regulatory pressures at the state and federal levels, we know it can be difficult to stay on top of new and changing regulations. This new tool tracks state and federal regulatory activities, and includes:

• Interactive map of regulatory status by state

• Summary of regulatory details by state

• Overview of federal refrigerant regulations

• Printable PDF summary

Alternative Refrigerants for Commercial Refrigeration

As the first step of the U.S. HFC phase-down takes effect, the supermarket industry is seeking clarity on alternative refrigerant options and their current approval status. This tool provides a high-level summary of current and future refrigerant options for U.S. commercial refrigeration applications, including:

• Stationary Refrigeration Remote Systems

• Remote Condensing Units

• Self-Contained Refrigerated Cases

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This release is kicking off a larger educational resource initiative we recently launched. Stay tuned for more new resource and contact us with questions.

NASRC's Top 10 Accomplishments In 2021

2021 presented the industry with new challenges, but that didn't stop our members from stepping up to accelerate our mission more than ever before!
Here's a snapshot of our top 10 collective accomplishments from 2021:

Check out our top 10 collective accomplishments in 2021!

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1.Sustainable Refrigeration Summit

Hosted the first-ever Sustainable Refrigeration Summit to bring together over 900 supermarket refrigeration stakeholders, government agencies, and policymakers to address the challenges to achieving zero emissions in supermarket refrigeration.

2. Funding Support for Natural Refrigerants

Developed new sources of funding for natural refrigerants: Authored a federal tax credit proposal that is currently in circulation, secured a buyer for our carbon financing pilot, and advanced progress to solidify refrigerant GWP as a metric for utility incentives.

3. Modular Solutions for Existing Facilities

Accelerated technology solutions to enable the modular transition of existing stores to natural refrigerants. Published a report characterizing retailer demand for natural refrigerant-based condensing units to bring more products to the US market. Accelerated the approval of a higher R290 charge limit to increase available self-contained solutions.

4. Workforce Development

Drafted a CO2 curriculum for trade schools & community colleges with ESCO Group, industry stakeholders, and HVACR schools to help build a future workforce that is well-versed in natural refrigerants. Kicked off a workforce development plan to grow the technician workforce.

5. State Incentive Programs

Secured $880,000 in incentives for 12 natural refrigerant projects in California and coordinated the grant deliverables. Mobilized our members and partners to support additional program funding. Worked with other states to share lessons learned and outline future incentive programs.

6. Retailer Leak Reduction Initiative

Formed a Retailer Best Practices Committee to facilitate a retailer-driven leak reduction initiative. Retailers drafted equipment specifications to proactively reduce refrigerant leaks over the lifespan of a system.

7. Pilot Projects & Research Studies

Initiated new field studies and pilot projects on advanced refrigeration technologies to better understand energy performance and other ongoing costs of natural refrigerant solutions. Contributed to the design of a comprehensive M&V study as part of the CARB FRIP grant program.

8. Strengthened Member Network

Grew our membership network to nearly 150 organizations representing over 38,000 food retail locations. Members provided support to NASRC initiatives and participated in member activities, such as Progress Group meetings and monthly End-User Roundtable meetings.

9. Policymaker Engagement

Strengthened relationships with policymakers at the state and federal levels to inform effective policies that address challenges and support the transition to climate-friendly refrigerants. Evidenced by the 60+ policymaker attendees from the federal government and 16 states at our Sustainable Refrigeration Summit.

10. Education & Awareness

Increased awareness of natural refrigerants as a leading climate solution through media coverage, podcast interviews, and other speaking engagements to expand support for the transition away from HFCs.

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Thank you to our members, who are behind all of these achievements!
We look forward to building on the momentum we've created together in 2022.

Top 5 Takeaways From The Sustainable Refrigeration Summit

We recently hosted the first-ever Sustainable Refrigeration Summit, bringing together supermarket refrigeration stakeholders, government agencies, and policymakers to address the challenges to achieving zero emissions in supermarket refrigeration.

NASRC members can now access the session slides and recordings in our Member Resource Library, but we've also compiled our top 5 takeaways from the Summit below:

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1. Natural refrigerants are becoming standard in new stores
A growing number of food retailers are choosing natural refrigerants in new store construction. However there are still challenges that need to be addressed, and given the very low rate of new construction we can't achieve zero emissions without addressing existing stores.

2. Existing stores need more solutions
Existing stores represent the greatest opportunity for HFC emissions reduction, but also the greatest challenge. Retailers need more solutions in the market to modularly transition existing facilities, such as natural refrigerant condensing units and codes and standards updates to allow a higher R290 charge limit.

3. Service workforce is a limiting factor
Even if all other barriers were removed, service workforce constraints will significantly limit the rate of the transition away from HFCs. There is a need for workforce development solutions to build a robust technician workforce with access to natural refrigerant training.

4. Funding is needed to accelerate the transition
Upfront cost premiums of natural refrigerant technologies remain one of the leading barriers in both new and existing stores. There is a need for new funding sources to support and accelerate the transition, especially for small and independent food retailers.

5. Effective policies can remove challenges
Increasing regulatory pressures at the state and federal levels are driving the transition to low-GWP and natural refrigerant technology solutions. Effective policies can address challenges and support the transition to move the industry forward together.

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Most importantly, it was clear across the summit that solutions to these challenges will required a coordinated effort with all stakeholders. NASRC is leading that effort together with our members and partners.

Contact us to get involved.

Support California’s $15 Million Incentives for Natural Refrigerants

NASRC is calling on our members and partners to demonstrate support for the proposed $15 million allocation to refund the California Air Resources Board (CARB) F-gas Reduction Incentive Program (FRIP) for the 2021-22 California budget (see page 9). Without strong demonstrated support from the industry, the proposed funding is at risk of redistribution to other initiatives. 

FRIP was established as part of the California Cooling Act (SB 1013) to alleviate the financial burdens associated with ultra-low global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants and was allocated $1 million under California’s 2019-20 fiscal year budget. The initial round of funding provided grants for 13 natural refrigerant projects, which NASRC coordinated under our Aggregated Incentives Program (AIP), see all awarded projects here.

Though the first round of funding demonstrated the potential of the program, it only scratched the surface of offsetting the significant cost burden California food retailers face in transitioning away from HFCs. With the capital cost of replacing a supermarket refrigeration system averaging over $1 million, replacing the roughly 4,000 supermarket locations in California equates to $4 billion in capital equipment costs that must be paid by food retailers operating in the state. This cost burden is only expected to increase with increasing regulatory pressures at the state and federal levels.

What’s Needed?

Given adequate funding renewed over a multi-year period, FRIP’s proven framework could go a long way in supporting the transition, but there is no guarantee that the proposed allocations will be approved. While we are pleased to see such a significant increase in the proposed budget compared to the first round, we are concerned that the money could be redistributed to other initiatives if the California legislature does not hear from the industry.

To that end, NASRC has prepared a template letter of support to help our members and partners demonstrate support for the funding. Our goal is to protect and increase the funding allocations in this and subsequent budget cycles so that FRIP can continue to support California food retailers and also provide a blueprint for other states to follow.  

If you are interested to submit a letter of support, please contact us for a template and instructions for submission.