Ahold Delhaize

Ahold Delhaize states that the company continues to expand organic offerings in its 2020 annual report.

Ahold Delhaize does not have a written, publicly available pollinator health policy for food and beverage supply chains that addresses the need to reduce use of pesticides of concern to pollinator and human health. A strong policy would include shifting to least-toxic farming approaches in order to avoid regrettable substitution of one toxic pesticide with another. The ecological farming methods that underpin organic farming, integrated pest management and regenerative agriculture reduce farmers’ overall need for pesticides.

Commitment to reduce pesticide use

0 out of 15 points

Avoiding regrettable substitutes

0 out of 5 points

Commitment to least-toxic approaches in non-organic supply chains

0 out of 10 points

Commitment to organic

5 out of 15 points

Ahold Delhaize’s free-from and organic offerings hit the $1 billion mark in sales in 2017. (Friends of the Earth recommends that companies track and report organic and “natural” or “free-from” sales separately to provide more transparency around organic sales data. Organic is a robust, federally regulated standard whereas “natural” has no clear definition.) Ahold Delhaize’s 2019 annual report states that the company continues  to add organic products to its house brands  in cooperation with suppliers, resulting in the conversion of 100 hectares of conventional agricultural fields to organic, and the company’s 2020 annual report states that it continues to expand organic offerings. Ahold Delhaize reports that 100% of own brand coffee, tea and cocoa are certified by Rainforest Alliance and Fair Trade certifications, which have meaningful criteria on Integrated Pest Management, and in some cases, restrictions on pesticides of concern. In 2021, Ahold subsidiary Giant Co. established a partnership with organic research center, Rodale Institute, to support U.S. farmers’ transition to organic agriculture.

Ahold Delhaize has not taken any other discernible action to reduce use of pesticides of concern to pollinator and human health or expand organic farming and other least-toxic approaches in its supply chains. The actions we evaluated include: 1) tracking use of pesticides in company supply chains, 2) measurably reducing pesticide use in the past three years and publicly reporting on data, 3) supporting farmers in non-organic supply chains to shift to least-toxic approaches such as integrated pest management and regenerative agriculture, 4) measurably expanding organic offerings in the past three years, 5) demonstrating support for U.S. growers to transition to organic farming, and 6) demonstrating advocacy for public policies aimed at reducing agricultural pesticide use, protecting pollinators and supporting the expansion of organic agriculture in the U.S.

Track pesticide use in supply chain

0 out of 10 points

Measurably reduce pesticide use

0 out of 15 points

Prioritize least-toxic approaches in non-organic supply chains

2.5 out of 20 points

Prioritize USDA certified organic

5 out of 25 points

Support domestic organic growers

5 out of 15 points

Support public policies

0 out of 5 points

Ahold Delhaize has a publicly available commitment to expand organic offerings. Ahold Delhaize also includes percent of total food sales from organic products as a Key Performance Indicator in its annual reports.

Ahold Delhaize does not have publicly available commitments or policies related to reducing use of pesticides of concern to pollinators and human health in its supply chain. Ahold Delhaize does not include reduction of pesticides of concern to pollinators and human health in company Key Performance Indicators or other formal sustainability criteria. Ahold Delhaize does not have educational content online about pesticides or organic farming, such as a full definition of the USDA certified organic label (prohibition of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, GMOs, antibiotics, and growth hormones, and promotion of farming methods that protect soil, water and biodiversity) or content on the value to pollinator and human health of decreasing use of toxic pesticides and expanding organic offerings.

Make policies and commitments publicly available

2 out of 6 points

Oversight

2.5 out of 5 points

Educate consumers

0 out of 10 points

Ahold Delhaize has communicated with Friends of the Earth in the past year.

Ahold Delhaize does not sell Roundup or other glyphosate-based home and garden products.

Ahold Delhaize has not made a public commitment to reduce or phase out use of neonicotinoids in live goods and garden plants. Ahold Delhaize has not made a public commitment to remove neonicotinoid products from store shelves.

Policy for live goods

0 out of 4 points

Policy for on-shelf pesticide products

2.5 out of 5 points