Kaufland achieves strong results in WWF’s scorecard scorecard
Kaufland has received high marks for its efforts to preserve forests and other ecosystems and to ensure compliance with human rights in the supply chain, in an analysis by the environmental protection organization WWF.
WWF highly valued the Schwarz Group-owned retailer for its efforts to prevent deforestation, especially in the cultivation of soybeans.
The retailer was also praised for its certification of raw materials and its commitment to human rights and the implementation of corporate due diligence.
Soybean survey at Kaufland
In order to quantify and evaluate the relevant soybean quantities in the indirect supply chain of its own branded products of animal origin, the company launched a 2021 soybean survey.
“Soybean mapping gives us an accurate picture of the origin, quantity and certification status of soy fed to animal products,” says Stephan Carbach, Head of Purchasing Sustainability International at Kaufland.
“This allows us to prioritize risks and approach our suppliers at an early stage to jointly develop and derive appropriate measures.”
Meat production
Elsewhere, Kaufland has not offered any beef from Brazil since 2019, as the species-rich ecosystems in the Cerrado and Amazon region are threatened by deforestation during feed production and grazing development.
The retailer is increasingly focusing on products from local farms, where the majority of pork and beef in Kaufland come from Germany.
“To promote sustainable German agriculture, we maintain fair and long-term partnerships with our suppliers and contract farmers,” explains Robert Pudelko, Head of Purchasing Sustainability Germany at Kaufland.
In accordance with the meat quality program for pork, 25% of the participating farms in Germany use only soy that does not come from South America.
“In addition to continuous approaches to reducing soy in feed, our goal is to change our entire value program in the pig area to traceable, physical and certified soy by the end of 2023, subject to current developments,” says Pudelko.
GMO-free products
Kaufland is also constantly increasing the number of GMO-free products in its own brands.
A wider range of dairy products under the K-Classic brand, as well as meat products under K-Purland and K-Wertschatze, carry the green ‘Without Gene Technology’ seal.
© 2022 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest Retail news. Article by Conor Farrelly. Click subscribe to sign up for ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.