Ahold Delhaize

Lobbying
Ahold Delhaize discloses a list of trade associations of which it is a member. It has however an opportunity to disclose a full list for all the jurisdication where it operates.

Stakeholder engagement
Ahold Delhaize discloses an overview of the issues raised during its regular/ongoing stakeholder engagement activities as well as the engagement channels and frequency, for each stakeholder group.

Sustainability strategy and accountability
Ahold Delhaize discloses its process for identifying and prioritising its most relevant sustainability impacts as well as the outcome of this process, in relation to its sustainability strategy and reports consistently against all its targets.

Ecosystem conversion and restoration
Ahold Delhaize discloses some activities to achieve conversion-free supply chains.

GHG emissions
Ahold Delhaize has set time-bound targets to reduce its scope 1, 2 and 3 greenhouse gas emissions as well as report progress against them. Additionally, the company reduces its scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions and its targets are aligned with a 1.5-degree trajectory.

Resource exploitation and circularity performance
Ahold Delhaize discloses activities to improve soil health or agrobiodiversity in its production or sourcing practices.

Solid and air pollution
Ahold Delhaize demonstrates commitment, partakes in activities and discloses quantitative data related to plastic use reduction and transitioning towards sustainable packaging, including the proportion of recycled content in plastic packaging.

Water
Ahold Delhaize works with its business relationships to improve their practices regarding access to water and sanitation.

Indigenous Peoples’ and land rights
Ahold Delhaize is committed to respect Indigenous Peoples’ rights.

Safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment
Ahold Delhaize is committed to zero tolerance for acts of violence, threats, intimidation or judicial harassment committed against land and environmental rights defenders.

Act ethically
Ahold Delhaize has a policy prohibiting bribery and corruption, and includes anti-bribery and anti-corruption clauses in its contracts with direct business relationships. Also, it has a grievance mechanism for stakeholders to raise concerns and complaints regarding bribery and corruption. Moreover, the company discloses its lobbying expenditures.

Provide and promote decent work
Ahold Delhaize has a publicly available policy statement in which it commits to respecting the health and safety of workers, and expects its business relationships to commit to this as well. The company publicly states that workers shall not be required to work more than 48 hours in a regular work week or 60 hours including overtime. Additionally, it discloses the proportion of its total direct operations workforce covered by collective bargaining agreements, and describes how it works to support the practices of its business relationships in relation to freedom of association and collective bargaining.
Furthermore, the company discloses the proportion of its total direct operations workforce for each employee category by age, gender and ethnicity. Furthermore, it publicly commits to gender equality and women’s empowerment, and discloses time-bound targets related to this commitment.

Respect human rights
Ahold Delhaize has a publicly available policy statement committing it to respect human rights. It explains how it identifies its human rights risks and impacts in specific locations or activities covering its own operations and supply chain, and discloses how it assesses such risks and determines which ones it considers to be its salient human rights issues. Moreover, the company provides a case study describing how it has acted on a salient human rights risk issue.
Furthermore, the company indicates it has a human rights grievance mechanism accessible to all workers, as well as to all external stakeholders who may be adversely impacted by the company.

Lobbying
Ahold Delhaize has an opportunity to disclose a clear and detailed framework for assessing alignment of its trade associations with its sustainability targets and to report (potential) misalignments.

Sustainability strategy and accountability
Ahold Delhaize discloses some sustainability objectives/targets including climate, nutrition and ecosystem conversion. However, there is an opportunity to establish group-wide targets for the most material parts of its value chain. Additionally, while it discloses a remuneration policy related to ESG, it could link this policy to improvement in nature-related objectives and social issues. Lastly, the company has an opportunity to disclose whether its highest governance body has expertise with respect to the company’s most material sustainability topics.

Ecosystem conversion and restoration
Ahold Delhaize does not disclose a commitment to minimise ecosystem conversion, or to ensure zero conversion, and does not disclose activities working towards these goals. While the company has a target to achieve conversion-free supply chains, it does not cover all high-risk commodities. Furthermore, the company is not committed to restoring ecosystems and it does not disclose details and outcomes of ecosystem restoration projects in areas affected by its own operations or by its suppliers.

Impact and dependencies assessment
Ahold Delhaize has an opportunity to disclose assessments of its impacts on nature, including biodiversity, within its own operations and in its supply chain. It also has the opportunity to disclose its dependencies on nature within its own operations and upstream business relationships.

Invasive species
Ahold Delhaize has not identified any activities that could lead to the introduction of invasive alien species in its own operations.

Key areas and species
While Ahold Delhaize has pledged to avoid operational activities near World Heritage sites and IUCN Category I-IV protected areas, it still has the opportunity to disclose its specific locations that are in or adjacent to areas important for biodiversity. Additionally, the company could improve transparency by revealing the locations of its suppliers near important biodiversity areas. Moreover, the company could disclose the species populations existing in or adjacent to both its own locations and those of its suppliers as well as their status aligning with national and international conservation lists.

Resource exploitation and circularity performance
While Ahold Delhaize reports some of its inputs (i.e. plastic), it has an opportunity to disclose all its inputs according to an international standard. The company does not report quantitatively on its group-wide circularity performance. Furthermore, the company has an opportunity to disclose a target to improve soil health in its production or sourcing practices and report progress against it.

Solid and air pollution
Ahold Delhaize does not disclose relevant information related to pollution in its operations or supply chains.

Water
Ahold Delhaize does not disclose relevant information on water withdrawal or water pollution in its own operations or supply chains. No evidence found that the company discloses its processes to implement preventive and corrective action plans for identified specific risks to the right to water and sanitation in its own operations.

Indigenous Peoples’ and land rights
Ahold Delhaize does not disclose its processes to identify and recognize the rights of Indigenous Peoples when activities in its own operations may impact their rights or describes how it obtains Indigenous Peoples’ free, prior and informed consent.

Safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment
Ahold Delhaize states that each of its brands is committed to providing safe and secure working environments for all associates and customers. The company also identifies ‘affordable, healthy food and Children’s Rights’ as two salient human rights issues. However, no reference to local communities or affected communities or to aspects clean air, non-toxic environment, safe and clean environment was found in company’s policy documents. Then, the company has an opportunity to commit to respecting local communities’ right to a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment. Moreover, it should track its actual or potential negative impacts on the health of local communities.

Act ethically
Ahold Delhaize has the opportunity to outline its process for identifying bribery and corruption risks and impacts in specific locations or activities across its own operations. Additionally, the company could establish a policy that clearly defines its approach to lobbying and political engagement, and add a requirement for third-party lobbyists to adhere to that policy. Also, it could publicly disclose a policy statement stating that it refrains from making political contributions.

Provide and promote decent work
Ahold Delhaize has an opportunity to disclose how it monitors the health and safety performance of its suppliers. Additionally, the company has an opportunity to set and disclose a time-bound target for paying all workers a living wage, and to disclose how it works to support the payment of a living wage by its suppliers. Furthermore, the company could disclose the ratio of basic salary and remuneration of women to men in its total direct operations workforce, categorized by significant locations of operation.

Respect human rights
Ahold Delhaize has an opportunity to issue a policy statement that commits to respecting all the fundamental rights at work as declared by the ILO. Additionally, the company can also issue a policy statement that expects its suppliers to uphold these rights.