Corporate Social Responsibility Report - Ahold

Partners in educatingconsumersThe World Wide Fund for Natureand Albert Heijn have joined forcesin the Netherlands to increase thesale of sustainable seafood to Dutchconsumers. In September 2007,both organizations signed a three-yearcooperation agreement. The goal is toincrease the sale of sustainable typesof fresh and frozen seafood. AlbertHeijn is also educating itscustomers about the importanceof sustainable seafood production.All private label seafood productscarry the message “We are puttingan effort into seafood sustainability”and display detailed informationabout the sustainability status ofthe product.As part of its commitment to supplier diversity, in 2007 Giant-Carlisle held its first Supplier Diversity/Regional and SmallBusiness trade show designed to strengthen the connectionbetween agricultural, minority and retail industries. More than50 members of the PA (Pennsylvania) Preferred program hadthe opportunity to market their products at this trade show.(For more information on this program see “Local buying”).Stop & Shop/Giant-Landover organized and hosted four supplierdiversity Not-for-Resale vendor fairs in 2007, targetingpurchases ranging from construction services to shoppingcart maintenance. More than 100 WMBEs participated.The largest contract awarded to a minority- or women-ownedenterprise in the Not-for-Resale category in 2007 was in excessof 18 million.Local buyingExtending the range of our supplier diversity initiatives are“buy local” programs that support the economic developmentof many of our local communities by giving small businessesaccess to a wider market for their goods. Both in the UnitedStates and in Europe, our stores’ connection to the localcommunity is often reinforced by having locally produced freshand specialty foods included in their offerings.Giant-Carlisle’s support of the PA Preferred Program – designedto identify locally sourced Pennsylvania products and educateconsumers on where to find them – has been recognized forgiving opportunities to hundreds of small companies across itsmarket area and the state.ICA and Albert Heijn have initiatives that not only give localsuppliers a more significant presence in stores, but also bring awider range of choice to customers. For example, ICA launchedthe “Local Tastes” project in 2007. During the year, thecompany met with a series of small local suppliers and workedwith them to help find opportunities to grow their businesses.26Ahold CSR Report 2007