Zaandam, the Netherlands, June 9, 2022 – Ahold Delhaize published its second Human Rights Report today, an important milestone for the company. The report focuses on the past two years of progress by Ahold Delhaize and its great local brands on the company’s global Roadmap on Human Rights. In addition, Ahold Delhaize published its updated Position on Human Rights today, which is grounded in the company’s Code of Ethics and outlines its commitment to supporting and respecting human rights in its own operations and supply chains. This updated Position on Human Rights broadens the benchmarks and international standards that guide the company’s approach to human rights. The updated Position also includes additional information on Ahold Delhaize's approach to due diligence and access to remedy.
The Human Rights Report 2022 provides an update on efforts to ensure human rights are respected, both within Ahold Delhaize and the brands and across the supply chains they rely on. Following the global due diligence process finalized in 2020, Ahold Delhaize implemented a methodology to help each of the brands assess the human rights impacts in its own operations and supply chains. In addition to implementing this methodology, each brand or region also conducted a supply chain risk assessment. This report highlights examples of the brands’ great work, such as Albert Heijn recently publishing a report on its approach to human rights due diligence and Ahold Delhaize USA engaging Business for Social Responsibility to conduct a human rights assessment.
In 2020, Ahold Delhaize shared an overview of its salient issues, including six priority issues: i) health & safety, ii) compensation, iii) freedom of association, iv) women's rights, v) forced labor and vi) discrimination & harassment. Another issue the brands consistently prioritize is child labor. The present report includes 27 case studies that highlight relevant programs and partnerships on each of the salient issues, including Alfa Beta’s SHARE Equality label, Food Lion Feeds and the partnership between Albert Heijn, Delhaize Belgium and IDH The Sustainable Trade Initiative in the Sustainability Initiative Fruit and Vegetables.
The Human Rights Report 2022 also gives an update on Ahold Delhaize’s global governance of human rights and progress on key programs in its own operations, including the diversity and inclusion aspiration to achieve 100% gender balance at all levels, to be 100% reflective of the markets the brands serve, and to strive for 100% inclusion. The report shares how the company provides access to remedy through Speak Up lines and engages with stakeholders through its associate engagement survey and relevant partnerships.
Frans Muller, President and CEO of Ahold Delhaize said, “We believe that it is our responsibility to respect human rights. By stepping up on our commitments, we aim to contribute to a more equitable society that also recognizes and respects human rights. Over the past two years, our brands have made significant progress on our Roadmap on Human Rights. The brands are the driving force of our business and the case studies in this report demonstrate their dedication to advancing our efforts on topics such as diversity and inclusion, health, sustainability and human rights. As we progress, we will continue to learn and grow so that we can make meaningful contributions to human rights in our brands’ operations, supply chains and communities.”
More work needs to be done, and the implementation of the Roadmap is a process of continuous improvement. Ahold Delhaize will continue to demonstrate progress on its Roadmap and report publicly and transparently on its human rights commitments to external stakeholders and against relevant benchmarks in its annual reports.
The next steps on our Roadmap on Human Rights:
More information on the Human Rights Report 2022 and the updated Position on Human Rights can be found here. The Ahold Delhaize team welcomes feedback and input on this Report and its Roadmap. Please send any comments or questions to ethics@aholddelhaize.com.
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