Co-op bans its stores from selling Israeli produce as it begins boycott to 'support peace'

Daily Mail​

2 days ago

Co-op has banned its stores from selling Israeli produce as it begins its boycott to 'support peace'.
The supermarket said that items including carrots will be scrapped from their shelves this month as part of a push to 'stop sourcing relationships with countries where there are internationally recognised community-wide human rights abuses and violations of international law'.
They will also stop selling own-brand products that contain Israeli ingredients in a phased approach, starting from June 2025, in a move pro-Israeli activists have branded 'shameful'.
Israel is placed alongside 17 countries the store has acted against - including Russia, North Korea, Syria, Somalia and Iran.
The Co-op already did not source produce from Israeli settlements in Gaza and the West Bank.
It comes following pressure from members, who the chain says have urged them to do all they can to 'advocate and build peace'.
The store has based the countries they have blocked assessments from organisations including the UN, who have said they are home to community-wide human rights abuses or violations of international law.
They claim they chose actions that will 'alleviate suffering' but not negatively affect their commercially successful co-operative business.
Debbie White, Chair of the Co-op Group Board said: 'This policy, which has been developed over the past year as a part of our Hate Divides Communities, Co-operation Builds Them' campaign, is a clear demonstration of our co-operative values in action, where the voices of our members have been listened to and then acted upon.
'We are committed, where we can, to removing products and ingredients from our shelves which are sourced from those countries where the international consensus demonstrates there is not alignment with what happens in those countries and our co-operative values and principles.
'As a business, we have a long-standing legacy of doing the right thing, supporting Fairtrade and championing ethical sourcing and this policy is a natural progression of this. Our Hate Divides Communities, Co-operation Builds Them campaign has once again positioned our Co-op with those who advocate for and build peace.'
Last month members of Co-op backed a motion to boycott Israeli products, with nearly three quarters supporting the vote.
They urged the board to show 'moral courage and leadership', while the Palestine Solidarity Campaign saying the vote showed members would not support the 'apartheid economy'.
Earlier this year, pro-Palestine activists tore avocados, hummus and dates off the shelves in Waitrose as they attacked items produced in Israel.
The move was slammed by the Campaign Against Antisemitism, who branded the move 'hateful and divisive' and claimed it constituted intimidation.
A spokesperson told MailOnline: 'It is apt that this policy of boycotting the Jewish state was developed as part of a Co-op campaign titled 'Hate Divides Communities', because that is exactly what this policy is: hateful and divisive.
'Boycotts like this have real world effects on the Jewish community, as Jews know from centuries of such ostracism.
'This is shameful from the Co-op, and its terrible reputation in the Jewish community is well earned.'