Latest news with #CoopGroup
Asharq Al-Awsat
3 days ago
- Business
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Britain's Co-op to Stop Sourcing from Israel
British food retailer the Co-op Group will cease sourcing products and ingredients from 17 countries, including Israel, where there are "internationally recognized" human rights abuses and violations of international law, it said on Tuesday. The Co-op, which is owned by its members and trades from over 2,300 food stores across the UK, said it would stop selling carrots from Israel from this month as part of a commitment to no longer stock Israeli goods, Reuters reported. The company's prohibited list follows a board review of the Co-op's role "in building peace". European nations have been increasingly critical of the civilian toll of Israel's military campaign against Hamas since the Palestinian militant group's October 7, 2023 attack on Israeli communities. Other countries on the Co-op list include Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran, Libya and Syria. "The voices of our members have been listened to and then acted upon," Debbie White, chair of the Co-op Group board, said. "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." Tesco, Britain's biggest food retailer, does not source products from Israeli settlements within the occupied Palestinian territories. However, along with other UK retailers it does source from Israel in line with government advice. Last month, the independent board of Ben & Jerry's said the conflict in Gaza was a genocide, escalating a bitter feud between the ice cream maker and its longtime London-based corporate parent Unilever.
Al Arabiya
3 days ago
- Business
- Al Arabiya
Italian Coop supermarkets to stop selling Israeli products in solidarity with Gaza
An Italian supermarket chain says it has stopped selling Israeli products in solidarity with Palestinians affected by war and hunger in the Gaza Strip. The decision, announced on Tuesday and the first for a major Italian food retailer, will mean that the Coop Alleanza 3.0 will remove Israeli peanuts, tahini sauce and SodaStream carbonated water makers from its shelves, a statement said. In an additional sign of support for people in Gaza, supermarkets have also started selling the pro-Palestinian Gaza Cola fizzy drink, the statement added. Coop Alleanza 3.0 is the largest cooperative in the Coop Italia network, comprising almost 350 stores in eight Italian regions from Friuli-Venezia Giulia in the north to Puglia in the south. The cooperative 'cannot remain indifferent to the ongoing violence in the Gaza Strip and united in calling for the immediate cessation of military operations,' it said. Coop supermarket chains in Florence and the central regions of Tuscany, Lazio and Umbria are also no longer stocking Israeli products, spokespeople said, insisting, however, that this did not amount to a formal boycott of Israeli products. Israel's war in Gaza has triggered protests by some retailers and consumers internationally. On Tuesday British food retailer the Co-op Group, a separate entity to Italy's Coop, announced it would cease sourcing products from Israel and 16 other countries where it said there were human rights abuses and violations of international law. Israel has strongly denied accusations that it has committed war crimes and breaches of international law in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
The Independent
3 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
Supermarket to stop selling Israeli carrots and Russian vodka in new ‘peace' policy
Co-op is set to remove products, including Israeli carrots and Russian vodka, from its shelves as part of a new policy aimed at boycotting goods from "countries of concern". The supermarket chain announced it will cease sourcing relationships with nations where there are "internationally recognised community-wide human rights abuses and violations of international law," stating the move is intended to "support peace and co-operation." Under the new policy, the grocer will, wherever possible, avoid using ingredients in Co-op branded products or selling whole items from 17 identified "countries of concern." Specific products on the prohibited list include carrots from Israel, Russian vodka, and mangoes from Mali. These items will be phased out from Co-op stores and products, with the process commencing this month. The supermarket said the policy had been approved by the Co-op Group Board and coincided with the start of Co-op Fortnight in the UK. It followed a year of 'detailed analysis' and was based on three criteria: agreement across respected assessments of behaviour which would constitute community-wide human rights abuses or violations of international law; that the actions Co-op could take would make a difference to those affected; and that the grocer's actions would not negatively affect its integrity as a commercially successful business aligned with co-operative values and principles. Over recent years, Co-op members had made clear through surveys, engagement and motions that conflict was one of their biggest concerns and that 'their Co-op should do all it can to advocate and build peace', it said. Debbie White, chairwoman 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.'
Reuters
3 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
Britain's Co-op to stop sourcing from Israel
LONDON, June 24 (Reuters) - British food retailer the Co-op Group will cease sourcing products and ingredients from 17 countries, including Israel, where there are "internationally recognised" human rights abuses and violations of international law, it said on Tuesday. The Co-op (42TE.L), opens new tab, which is owned by its members and trades from over 2,300 food stores across the UK, said it would stop selling carrots from Israel from this month as part of a commitment to no longer stock Israeli goods. The company's prohibited list, which also includes Russian vodka and mangoes from Mali, follows a board review of the Co-op's role "in building peace". European nations have been increasingly critical of the civilian toll of Israel's military campaign against Hamas since the Palestinian militant group's October 7, 2023 attack on Israeli communities. Other countries on the Co-op list include Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran, Libya and Syria. "The voices of our members have been listened to and then acted upon," Debbie White, chair of the Co-op Group board, said. "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." Last month, the independent board of Ben & Jerry's said the conflict in Gaza was a genocide, escalating a bitter feud between the ice cream maker and its longtime London-based corporate parent Unilever (ULVR.L), opens new tab.
The Independent
4 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
Co-op to stop sourcing carrots from Israel to ‘support peace and co-operation'
Co-op is to stop sourcing carrots from Israel, among other products from 'countries of concern', to 'support peace and co-operation', it has announced. The supermarket chain said it will stop sourcing relationships with countries where there are 'internationally recognised community-wide human rights abuses and violations of international law'. The policy says that, wherever possible, the grocer will not use ingredients in Co-op branded products or sell whole products from 17 countries of concern. Products and ingredients on the prohibited list include Russian vodka, mangoes from Mali and carrots from Israel. They will be removed from Co-op shelves and products on a phased basis, starting this month. The supermarket said the policy had been approved by the Co-op Group Board and coincided with the start of Co-op Fortnight in the UK. It followed a year of 'detailed analysis' and was based on three criteria: agreement across respected assessments of behaviour which would constitute community-wide human rights abuses or violations of international law; that the actions Co-op could take would make a difference to those affected; and that the grocer's actions would not negatively affect its integrity as a commercially successful business aligned with co-operative values and principles. Over recent years, Co-op members had made clear through surveys, engagement and motions that conflict was one of their biggest concerns and that 'their Co-op should do all it can to advocate and build peace', it said. Debbie White, chairwoman 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.'
