July 10 (Reuters) - Walmart ( WMT ) on Wednesday said it

will build five new warehouses with a high tech spin in the

United States aiming to bolster and speed up the distribution of

perishable products to its 4,600 stores.

The distrubition centers (DC) equipped with automation

technology will handle temperature-sensitive products like milk,

meat and vegetables and fruits that can spoil quickly, unlike

ambient DCs which are designed for items that need to be kept in

a dry environment at room temperature.

The new centers will be located in Wellford, South Carolina,

Belvidere, Illinois, and Pilesgrove, New Jersey, the company

said, in addition to one in Shafter, California - which has been

operational since 2021 - and a still-in-development facility in

Lancaster, Texas.

Collectively, the DCs will bring around 2,000 new jobs,

Walmart ( WMT ) said in a blog post.

Walmart ( WMT ) said the automation technology deployed at these new

DCs could store double the number of cases, and process more

than twice the volume of a traditional DCs for perishable goods,

more than doubling the number of cases processed per hour.

Walmart ( WMT ) has been investing in technology that enhances quick

delivery and pickup services for groceries. The company also

uses its stores to fulfill online orders.

By the end of its fiscal year 2026, it expects about 65% of

its stores to be serviced by automation.

The largest grocery retailer in the U.S. also said that it

would add over 500,000 square feet of automation per site at

four existing DCs to increase their capacity, and retrofit its

facility in Haven, Florida with the technology.

Walmart ( WMT ) is the country's largest grocer generating annual

sales of nearly $650 billion with groceries accounting for 60%

of it.