
Our strategy
As a Swiss cooperative with a tradition stretching back more than 150 years, the Coop Group’s focus lies on its members and its customers. We firmly integrate sustainability into our core business and line responsibility. In 2021, we adopted our Sustainability Strategy 2022–2026 and anchored sustainability as an overarching theme for all business areas of the Coop Group: all subsidiaries address the issues defined by the strategy that are relevant to their business activities and set targets for these issues. An issue is relevant for a subsidiary if either the subsidiary offers products or services that contribute to the issue or if the impact of the subsidiary is large enough in relation to the entire Coop Group (for example, the energy consumption of a subsidiary in relation to the total energy consumption of the Coop Group). In the case of company expansions, for example through acquisitions of companies, their business activities are analysed with regard to the key issues and target agreements are introduced for the next possible calendar year. Whenever possible, the target agreements of all Coop Group companies relate to the same base year (2021). If this is not possible, we show and explain the deviation.
Our core business activities range from the purchasing and production of products in the food and non-food segment, to sales in our bricks-and-mortar and online channels along the entire value chain. We conducted a comprehensive, risk-based review to identify the positive and negative effects from a sustainability perspective on the various levels and assigned these to our areas for action and fields of activity.
DERIVATION OF KEY ISSUES
CLIMATE PROTECTION
PILLAR 2
To ensure the effectiveness and credibility of our targets and measures, we are committed to implementing internationally recognized sustainability standards. We review the focal points annually and include newly identified and relevant topics in the next goal-setting process.
On this website you will find the first status report on target achievement for the target period 2022–2026. This report transparently compiles information on all 26 key topics and reports on our areas for action, our basic approach, the measurable goals we have set, the concrete measures, but also the existing potentials and changes in reporting. Significant changes in reporting on the 26 key topics can be found under the respective topic.
MANAGEMENT STRUCTURE AND ORGANIZATION OF SUSTAINABILITY
Strategies, targets and missions are approved and reviewed at the Board of Directors or Executive Committee level. The Coop Group’s Board of Directors is also responsible for the annual review of the Sustainability Progress Report and for risk management with respect to economic, environmental and social risks. The materiality analysis also underwent a final review by the Board of Directors. Findings in the annual audit that lead to measures in subsequent years are finally approved by the Board of Directors and reviewed and continuously monitored by means of a follow-up report. In addition, in the area of risk management, we are in the process of setting up a due diligence process based on the OECD guidelines for the entire Coop Group. Coop’s sustainability team is responsible for reviewing target attainment and ensuring the necessary operational aspects are in place. They maintain regular dialogue with sustainability officers in the three business areas Retail, Production and Wholesale.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set global priorities and targets up to 2030 intended to get the world on course towards sustainability and tackle the current economic, social and environmental challenges. As an international company, through our key issues we incorporate these global goals in our strategies and spheres of action, contributing to their achievement in the private sector.
A major influence is given due to our business activities for targets related to our supply chains or consumption. A relevant influence is given due to our business activities for goals that are indirectly related to the use of natural resources or to social issues.