Sustainability Management

Group requirements

All companies of the Migros Group are obliged to meet a range of social and ecological minimum requirements, known as the Migros Group requirements for sustainability (formerly "basic requirements"). The Migros Group requirements were revised and clarified in the reporting year. 

The 15 Migros Group requirements for suppliers and product range include labour standards in the supply chain, and requirements relating to animal welfare and the protection of global fish stocks and rainforests. New requirements have been introduced for corporate environmental production in the supply chain, including a ban on peat, fur and mulesing. The latter is a technique that involves removing the skin of Merino sheep around the tail without anaesthetic.

The Migros Group requirements for corporate environmental protection include active and risk-based management of waste, electricity, heat and refrigerants. Furthermore, all companies are required to carbon offset their business flights, travel predominantly by public transport, and comply with procurement guidelines for climate-friendly cars.

Cooperative Retailing

In 2019, Migros successfully kept the two promises "WWF environmental education" and "Free starts for children at running events". The promises originated from the Generation M sustainability programme, with which Cooperative Retailing transparently communicates specific and measurable sustainability objectives.

Generation M is a component of the long-term sustainability strategy of Cooperative Retailing, which was revised in the reporting year and aligned with the Migros Group sustainability mission statement. Individual sustainability goals were defined during this process, such as continued measures aimed at making ecological and social improvements to as many products as possible. To this end, Migros has analysed the negative effects of the most important raw materials along the entire value-added chain, and defined cultivation and processing requirements on the basis of the results. In addition, the issues of climate protection, water, biodiversity and closed-loop recycling will be tackled more intensively.

Migros Industry

In the reporting year, the group certificate for the sustainability management of Migros Industry under ISO 14001 was confirmed. The standardised management and control system allows M-Industry to take systematic measures to optimise sustainability efforts, minimise the impact on the environment and meet the requirements under environmental law.

In 2019, eight sites were certified according to ISO 14001 for the first time. This means that a total of 19 Migros Industry companies were certified as at the end of 2019.  Certifying all companies according to ISO 14001 by 2020 is a component of the Migros Industry sustainability strategy, which includes more than 40 goals in the areas of environment, economy and society.