For us at Ahold, corporate social responsibility is about connecting: to business, to the community, to the environment, to the future. We believe that corporate social responsibility must be intrinsically connected to our strategic vision and commercial priorities.
We identify and act in areas where we can link benefits for customers and stakeholders with benefits for the wider community and the planet.
In doing so, we support Ahold’s mission to help our customers choose the best for themselves and the people they care about. As a food retailer, we are uniquely placed to observe social developments and trends and translate them into inspiring consumer choices.
For our business, we aim to act on these trends in ways that help sustain the planet and supplier communities, while decreasing our risk and costs.
The key is to identify relevant trends early enough to take appropriate action, so we can offer the right solutions at the right time. In our quest to stay one step ahead, we listen closely to our customers and engage actively with governments, NGOs and industry bodies.
“In the modern world, people often feel disconnected from each other, from food and from their environment. We aim to help them re-connect, by making it easy to choose healthy food and to rediscover the pleasure of cooking and eating, especially together with friends and family. And by focusing on product safety, sustainable trade and climate action, we help ensure the choices they make connect to the good of the planet as well.”
Roland Waardenburg, Vice President Corporate Responsibility