Aldi Ireland today confirmed it will join the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) as a foundation member.
ETI is an alliance of companies, trade unions and NGOs that promotes respect for workers' rights around the globe.
'The entire Aldi South Group is joining ETI, in a development which will enable ETI to further extend its reach into the retail sector,' the discount retailer outlined in a statement.
"Our strong belief is that a sustainable business needs a sustainable supply chain,” said John Curtin, group buying director at Aldi Ireland.
Priority Areas
Aldi has made significant strides in the past 12 months, publishing a Human Rights Policy and the results of a human rights assessment of its food and agriculture supply chains, which identified several priority areas, including cocoa, nuts, tropical fruit, oils and condiments and fish and seafood.
The group said that it is looking to get actively involved in ETI Working Groups related to its priority supply chain areas, and engage with ETI’s collaborative model in order to learn from and share best practice with other companies, NGOs and trades unions.
Speaking about Aldi's move to become a member of the initiative Peter McAllister, executive director of ETI said: "This both recognises the work that has already been done and the need for greater collaboration to tackle some of the systemic problems we see in global supply chains."
"Its desire to take a leading role and commitment to improving workers’ rights sends an important signal to the retail sector as a whole."
© 2019 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Donna Ahern. Click sign-up to subscribe to Checkout.
