Wal-Mart about to develope an index to check product sustainability

The world's biggest retailer Wal-Mart Stores Inc, announced the development of an index that will be used to measure the social and environmental impact of the products it sells in its discount stores.

The information could be used to one day provide consumers a label assessing how "green" or "sustainable" a product is. "In 2005, Wal-Mart set an aspirational goal to sell products that sustain our resources and environment," states Matt Kistler, Wal-Mart's senior vice president of sustainability, on a website discussing the index. Wal-Mart has reached out to professors and environmental groups for help in developing the index. The retailer said it will be used to evaluate its 60,000 suppliers and determine which merchandise winds up on its store shelves.