Key societal topics

Ahold Delhaize brands are committed to working with suppliers who share the Ahold Delhaize values and concerns for animal welfare. They look to work with suppliers who are committed to sound, science-based animal care practices and the elimination of animal cruelty, abuse and neglect.

Animal welfare

Biodiversity

Mitigating our operations and supply chain impacts on climate change

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The protection of personal data is paramount. Customers, associates and business partners entrust our businesses with their personal data and we must safeguard this information at all times. At Ahold Delhaize and its brands we always strive to use customer data to benefit customers, whether it is checking their home address for grocery deliveries, accessing their shopping history to receive personalized benefits or confirming account details for online orders.

Data Privacy

Around the world, forests continue to disappear, often for agricultural, ranching and logging purposes. Deforestation is a particular concern for tropical rainforests as these forests capture carbon emissions (and thus help mitigate climate change) and they are home to much of the world’s biodiversity. For these reasons and more, it is critical the food industry helps reduce deforestation by identifying alternative methods to produce the commodities that feed the world.

Deforestation

A safe work environment is fundamental, but the workplace should also offer opportunities for development and for a healthy life, as well as a true spirit of inclusiveness and diversity. Investing in health and inclusion programs increases morale and job satisfaction, creativity and innovation.

Diversity & Inclusion

Food loss and waste negatively impacts food security worldwide, and fuels climate change. To build a well-nourished and sustainable society, the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 12 on sustainable consumption and production calls for cutting retail and consumer food waste in half, as well as reducing food losses along production and supply chains, by 2030.

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Ahold Delhaize brands are dedicated to helping customers eat well, save time and live better. Our local brands focus on providing affordable nutritious choices and providing clear product information that enables customers to make choices that fit their needs, their tastes, and their values.

Genetically Modified Organisms

As part of our Leading Together Strategy, Ahold Delhaize and each of its brands share a set of values that support an ethical culture and are the foundation of our commitment to conduct our business by doing what’s right, every day. We are committed to respecting the human rights of our associates, our customers, our communities and the people who work throughout our supply chains. This commitment is based on our own collective belief that all people should be treated with dignity and respect and is derived from international principles, such as the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

Human rights

Mechanization

It is almost impossible to imagine the world without plastic, as our food system has come to depend on plastic for safety and convenience. In our business, packaging protects the safety of our food, helps reduce food waste and communicates information to customers. Packaging made from plastic can provide additional benefits, such as a lighter overall weight that reduces material use and greenhouse gas emissions.

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At Ahold Delhaize, we seek to make a positive impact in the communities where we operate and be a good neighbor. One way we do this is by paying taxes in a way that takes into consideration social and corporate responsibility and the interests of all our stakeholders. Our overall tax approach is in line with Ahold Delhaize’s Business Principles, Healthy and Sustainable strategy and Code of Conduct.

Responsible Tax

By 2050, the global population is expected to reach nine billion people. How can we feed everyone and guarantee high levels of food safety and nutrition, without depleting our natural resources? It is a challenge that must be addressed at all stages of the supply chain.

Product safety and sustainability

Seafood is the daily source of protein for 3 billion people, making it an important part of our business. As marine fish stocks decline and demand increases, both the global fishing industry as well as the marine ecosystem face tough challenges. Destructive fishing methods and climate change are heavily damaging ocean environments. Similarly, the seafood industry experiences pressure from illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, undermining efforts to ensure sustainable production.

Seafood

Palm oil is an important ingredient in many processed products used daily. It is an ingredient in food products like cookies, margarine and instant noodles, but also in non-food products like shampoos and detergents. This makes palm oil a highly versatile and key ingredient in our daily diets and routines. At the same time, palm oil production faces a number of key challenges.

Palm oil

Although a steaming hot cup of coffee or tea share many similarities, their production is quite different. The majority of the world’s coffee is grown on small farms, by farmers who sell only a small number of bags of coffee annually, while most of the world’s tea is produced by millions of hired workers tending to tea shrubs on large plantations. For both, earning a decent income can be difficult. The two crops are vulnerable to a changing climate, where erratic droughts and rainfall can lead to lower yields. At times this leads to worker exploitation and poor living conditions in the sector.

Coffee

Soy is one of the most widely used ingredients in our food products, including tofu, soy milk, soy oil, soy flour, or soy lecithin. However, the clear majority of the soy used in our supply chains, is embedded in our animal protein supply chains (meat, farmed fish, eggs and dairy). This is because soy, a high in protein legume, is fed to animals to help maintain healthy growth. In recent years, there has been a sharp increase in demand for soy. This resulted in a rapid expansion of soy production in South America, particularly in Brazil, where there are large amounts of fertile land and water.

Soy

Chocolate is the ultimate feel-good treat, and at Ahold Delhaize, we want to make sure that everyone can feel good about the way it is produced. Over 70% of the world’s cocoa is produced in West Africa, where the majority is produced by hundreds of thousands of small farmers. These farmers face several problems including depleted soils, aging farms and farmers, pests and diseases, and low global cocoa prices.

Cacoa

Perhaps unknown to some, a large number of products in grocery retail contain wood fibers. Ahold Delhaize brands use wood fiber in the form of pulp and paper for products like toilet paper, kitchen paper, or paper plates, and in cardboard packaging. The wood fiber used in our products comes from either natural forests or pulpwood plantations. Both face sustainability challenges. Illegal logging of natural forests can result in forest and habitat loss, but also in major economic losses for production countries and communities.

Wood fiber