Waimakariri MP Matt Doocey has officially opened the new Belfast Countdown store, Christchurch’s first ever Green Star rated supermarket. 

The new, 3,450sqm Countdown Belfast and $25 million investment has been designed and constructed with sustainability in mind. The supermarket also has an additional, 1700sqm eStore that adjoins the supermarket with a purpose-built space for online customers to pick up their orders, and a dedicated team for servicing the local area with online grocery deliveries. 

Doocey said the new store was an exciting addition for the growing community of northern Christchurch.

"I’m sure they will be impressed with their new state-of-the-art shopping experience," he said.

"I’m really pleased that Countdown has chosen to invest in our community with a new store, and for it to be Christchurch’s first ever Green Star rated supermarket is just outstanding.

"It’s a great space to shop in, and it’s even better that it’s been built to look after our environment and people for years to come."

Countdown’s Director of Property, Matt Grainger, said Countdown was proud to be investing in a growing area of Christchurch and delivering a store that will leave a lighter footprint for future generations. 

"Belfast is seeing some impressive growth with plenty of new residential developments in the area. We wanted to make sure we were delivering a sustainable supermarket that could not only meet that growing demand both online and in-store, but also give locals a fresh new grocery shopping option with a modern look and feel. 

"Our team have worked really hard to create exactly that type of space and we’re really proud that Belfast will be the first supermarket in Christchurch that’s been designed and built to meet Green Star accreditation. 

"As customers walk around the store, they’ll be able to see sustainability in action with digital shelf labels to reduce our paper use, doors on fridges to reduce energy use, bike parks to encourage more environmentally friendly travel and we’ll soon be installing EV chargers too.

"Behind the scenes, we’ve also worked really hard to reduce the environmental impact of our construction by focusing on reducing construction waste to landfill and carefully selecting the types of materials, like timber, that we’ve used."