• Safeway announced that it will “become the first U.S.-based retail grocery chain and manufacturer of private label merchandise to join The Sustainability Consortium in support of the organization's science-based work toward a more sustainable global supply chain. The company joins other retailers and consumer product manufacturers that have become members of the Consortium and its product ‘life cycle’ mission including social and environmental considerations.”
According to the story, “Safeway is interested in aggregating the data for primary sectors such as agriculture, dairy, packaging and fishery through industrial food processing to retail delivery. This data will be leveraged in creating Safeway's company-wide supply chain policy encouraging sustainable purchasing and manufacturing practices throughout the organization's direct and indirect buying ... Safeway will play a leadership role in modeling life cycle inventories; the goal is to better understand the complete scope of industry's social and environmental footprint.”
• Reuters reports that Marks & Spencer plans to “step up its plans to go ‘green’ by opting for more sustainable ingredients and agreeing a living wage for suppliers in its bid to become the world's most sustainable retailer by 2015. M&S said in a statement Monday its new plan would extend its original green targets that were introduced in 2007 and would make the company more efficient, develop new markets and build customer loyalty ... M&S said its new commitments would include making sure all 2.7 billion food, clothing and home items carried at least one sustainable or ethical quality such as being fair-trade or free range.”
According to the story, “Safeway is interested in aggregating the data for primary sectors such as agriculture, dairy, packaging and fishery through industrial food processing to retail delivery. This data will be leveraged in creating Safeway's company-wide supply chain policy encouraging sustainable purchasing and manufacturing practices throughout the organization's direct and indirect buying ... Safeway will play a leadership role in modeling life cycle inventories; the goal is to better understand the complete scope of industry's social and environmental footprint.”
• Reuters reports that Marks & Spencer plans to “step up its plans to go ‘green’ by opting for more sustainable ingredients and agreeing a living wage for suppliers in its bid to become the world's most sustainable retailer by 2015. M&S said in a statement Monday its new plan would extend its original green targets that were introduced in 2007 and would make the company more efficient, develop new markets and build customer loyalty ... M&S said its new commitments would include making sure all 2.7 billion food, clothing and home items carried at least one sustainable or ethical quality such as being fair-trade or free range.”
- KC's View:
