About this report
As a large group of companies and service providers, Migros is in constant contact with people and its environment in various ways.
In addition to Migros' economic performance and its asset, financial and earnings position, this report also highlights its roots in the natural and man-made environment and its interactions with society and various stakeholders. Migros has a clear concept of value creation and manages the company accordingly.
In the Migros Annual Report 2016 (M16), all Swiss franc amounts (where appropriate) are for the first time shown in whole millions. All amounts and totals are rounded individually to the nearest million CHF unless otherwise noted. The sum of the individual rounded values can thus differ from the total shown.
Financial reporting
These Migros Group financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions of the law and the Swiss GAAP FER financial reporting standards. With the aim of ensuring maximum transparency for the reader, the Migros Group has decided in many areas to impose stricter reporting and disclosure requirements than those stipulated by Swiss GAAP FER. Swiss GAAP FER provides a framework for financial reporting that is as transparent as possible, clearly comprehensible and geared towards the needs of the reader.
The main accounting principles can be found in the PDF Migros Group Financial Report, available in the Download Center. The financial reports of the Migros Group are available in English, German and French. The German version is authoritative.
Governance
The information that we provide about governance describes the overall organisational and contextual structuring of the management and supervision of a cooperative. The Federation of Migros Cooperatives is committed to responsible, purposeful and integrated governance. It therefore voluntarily adheres to the provisions of economiesuisse's Swiss Code of Best Practice for Corporate Governance, to the Corporate Governance Directive of the SIX Swiss Exchange (DCG) and, where appropriate, to the federal ordinance against excessive pay (VegüV). Any deviations from these provisions are referred to in the report.
Sustainability reporting is an integral part of the Annual Report. In this reporting, Migros discloses its sustainability efforts in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI G4) standard and the ten principles of the Global Compact of the United Nations (UN Global Compact). This applies to the chapters Environment, Products, Employees, Society & Culture.
Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)
Migros bases its sustainability reporting on the guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). It has been applying the GRI G4 guidelines in accordance with the "comprehensive" option since 2013 (previously: G3). Migros also applies the additional guidelines for the food processing industry. The "comprehensive" reporting option ensures that all implementation indicators are reported on for all relevant issues, along with the company's internal structures and processes. The GRI Content Index with details about all relevant issues can be found here.
The report was submitted for the GRI Materiality Disclosure Service. GRI has confirmed that the G4 Materiality Disclosures (G4-17 – G4-27) were disclosed correctly.
UN Global Compact progress report
This Annual Report serves as a progress report (Communication on Progress, COP) within the meaning of the UN Global Compact (UNGC). The GRI Content Index provides information on the fulfilment of the ten principles of the UNGC.
Determination of the relevant issues
To determine the relevant sustainability issues, Migros relies on regular dialogue with important stakeholder groups, such as customers, employees, cooperative members, business partners, political parties, NGOs, the media and academic bodies.
The dialogue takes many different forms, ranging from the M-Infoline for customers, to staff surveys, through to association memberships and political discourse (GRI G4-26). This active communication with stakeholders helps Migros to understand trends and expectations at an early stage and identify social risks. More information about the dialogue with stakeholders can be found at In Dialogue with Migros (GRI G4-24, G4-25, G4-26). An overview of the partnerships and memberships provides information about the different stakeholder groups with which Migros maintains close and regular dialogue (GRI G4-26).
In 2016, the results of the WWF retailer rating provided some valuable pointers for further improvement, such as when implementing environmental requirements along the supply chain. Migros used the results and the feedback to identify future issues, make progress on ongoing projects and initiate new ones, such as the assessment of the level of ambition of the Migros 2020 climate and energy strategy in terms of global climate objectives.
On the basis of the GRI G4 guidelines and the Sector Supplement for food processing, the Sustainability & Issue Management department prioritised the results of its dialogue with all stakeholders according to their relevance for Migros (GRI G4-26). The issues were compared with the main expectations of Migros' most important stakeholders and then categorised into whether an issue is relevant within or outside the company (GRI G4-20, G4-21). The sustainable development goals (SDGs) of the United Nations and the principles of the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) for the food industry (Food Retailers & Distributors) were also taken into account when selecting the important issues.
The graph shows the result of this process. When generating the 2016 report, Migros focused on the overlap between important internal and external GRI aspects, SDGs and SASB principles. The graph shows the result of this process. When generating the 2016 report, Migros focused on the overlap between important internal and external GRI aspects, SDGs and SASB principles. Some of the issues in the two outer areas (externally and internally relevant) were included in the reporting in consultation with internal specialists (GRI G4-19, G4-27).
Independent review
Mitreva Treuhand und Revision AG has reviewed the statements and key indicators in the annual report. It also reviews the Generation M sustainability programme progress report on a semi-annual basis and carries out an annual review of the processes used to implement the basic requirements.
The CO2 burden and energy efficiency environmental key indicators are assessed annually by the independent Energy Agency for the Economy (EnAW). In addition, the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) and the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE) conduct implementation audits at selected companies in Switzerland (including the Migros Group companies) each year as part of the targets agreed for energy efficiency and CO2 reduction.
The editorial deadline for the key indicators was 21 March 2017. As some environmental key indicators had not been finalised by that point, there may be an update after the Annual Report is published online on 28 March 2017. Updated key indicators will be highlighted accordingly.
For the environmental key indicators, the previous year's figures are adjusted each year due to improved underlying data. As a result, the values in this report may differ from those in previous years' reports.
The details in this report generally relate to the entire Migros Group, except where otherwise stated. The sustainability reporting focuses on the strategic business units Cooperative Retailing (core business) and Industry & Wholesaling (GRI G4-17).
Cooperative Retailing includes the branches and operating centres of the ten regional Migros Cooperatives, the Federation of Migros Cooperatives (FMC), and the national distribution centres of Neuendorf and Suhr (the Migros leisure facilities and Tegut are not included). The Industry & Wholesaling department comprises thirty companies (23 in Switzerland and 7 abroad). With these two strategic business units, Migros generates 84% of its sales and employs 80% of its staff.
The strategic business units Commerce, Financial Services and Travel are only partially covered in the sustainability reporting (GRI G4-20). Selected figures for individual Migros companies on the basic requirements for suppliers and product range are taken into account. The relevant published figures on energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions for the entire Migros Group are currently based partly on estimates for the strategic business units Commerce, Financial Services and Travel. Due to the basic requirements for corporate environmental protection, the underlying data is becoming more complete and precise.
The sustainability reporting covers the following issues and business units (GRI G4-17, G4-18):
