Processing

Better working conditions through standards

To ensure socially acceptable working conditions in the supply chain, Migros demands that all suppliers and producers meet the minimum social requirements of the BSCI Code of Conduct or equivalent requirements, such as SA8000, ETI or ICTI Care.

In 2017, the Migros Group companies worked with around 9'050 suppliers. They conducted a total of 928 BSCI audits (2016: 713) in their supply chains, the majority of which were in India and China. The detailed results of the BSCI audit were within the sector average and look as follows: 

In addition to the BSCI audits, the specialists of the Migros Group carried out 156 factory inspections in the reporting year, primarily in India and China. The idea of the inspections is for the specialists to gain an insight into the conditions of the factories on site. This allows any non-conformities relating to the BSCI audit to be identified.

In the reporting year, Migros also participated in various BSCI committees and working groups to make an active contribution to strengthening the system integrity of BSCI and to revision of its organisation in terms of the statutes, structure and name (now: amfori). The changes come into effect in January 2018.

Capacity building for suppliers

Cooperative Retailing provides training, factory visits and courses to help its suppliers implement social standards. BSCI workshops are a key part of this: Migros specialists invite factories to these workshops so that they can prepare effectively for a BSCI audit or obtain information on how to correct existing non-conformities. 

in the reporting year, factories took part in 115 workshops (2016: 85). Migros also tested a new capacity building tool with three producers in China. This enables producers to train their employees on topics such as occupational health and safety, fire safety and building safety with the use of tablets. The programs contain films and questionnaires and can be completed without internet access.

Sustainable textiles

At the end of 2017, 66% of all textile products in Cooperative Retailing carried the Eco label. For clothing, the proportion stood at almost 79%. Although Migros has increased the proportion of certified textiles continuously in recent years, it did not meet the target of selling only textiles that have been produced in an environmentally and socially sustainable and traceable way by the end of 2017.

The reason for the target failure is that implementation of the Eco standard for complex textiles is an elaborate process and could not be completed as quickly as planned. Furthermore, for an item of clothing, a large number of operations have to be certified according to the Eco guidelines. Migros is a small player in the global textiles market, which makes it more difficult to impose standards on suppliers.

However, to meet the goal of procuring all the textile product range from ecologically and socially sustainable sources, Migros will acknowledge the international textile standards GOTS, Bluesign, Oeko-Tex Made in Green and IVN Best as equivalent to its own guidelines from this year. It is hoped that this will help to meet the sustainability targets more quickly.

Globus: recycled materials used in textiles

As part of its sustainability strategy, Globus has set itself the aim of promoting more products with added social and environmental value. Since 2017, the company has been selling coats made of sea waste by the Spanish fashion company Ecoalf. It works with fishermen who collect rubbish from the sea, in particular plastic and fishing nets. It then prepares it, processes it into fibres for textile production and uses it in items of clothing.

Ecoalf also uses available resources such as PET bottles, used fishing nets and coffee grounds to create fibres for textile production. The company thus saves water and energy and reduces greenhouse gas emissions in comparison with the production of new synthetic fibres.

Recipe improvements: less salt, sugar and fat

Migros is continuously improving its food, in particular in view of a balanced diet. Thanks to the M-Industry companies, it is able to have a direct influence on the recipes. For example, the sugar content of yoghurts was further reduced in 2017: flavoured, fruit and nut yoghurts contain 4.3% less sugar on average than in the previous year.

With actionsanté, Migros successfully kept its promise of improving the recipes of breakfast cereals at the end of 2017. The promise was for at least 70% of breakfast cereals to meet the Migros nutritional guidelines (e.g. less sugar, salt and fat). 86% of products meet the criteria.

With the introduction of the "YOU" brand in 2017, Migros now offers products based on the most natural ingredients and sensible nutritional values. These include low-sugar yoghurts, protein-rich pasta made from legumes and snacks based on superfoods, such as chia and quinoa.

Migros also improved the recipes of all of its toast breads in the reporting year. Jowa does not use any preservatives in its toast breads. It also offers new oven-baked breads that contain only natural ingredients and have been baked on stone. This process ensures that the bread stays fresh for longer, which in turn results in less food wastage.

Product tests

In 2017, Cooperative Retailing performed 21'479 product tests in total; 14 food products had to be recalled due to non-conformities; these included a wooden baby rattle that posed the risk that small parts might be swallowed. Migros also recalled diced ham sold under the M-Budget and TerraSuisse brands after it was found to contain listeria.