Lidl, the first supermarket to certify its management system to minimize food waste
Jun. 24 2021
Lidl has obtained Bureau Veritas certification of its Management System to Minimize Food Waste (SG-MDA) in all its stores and logistics centers across Spain, thus becoming the first supermarket to achieve this distinction.
This recognition comes after Lidl Spain has passed the independent and impartial audit process of Bureau Veritas, a world leader in testing, inspection, and certification services. In this way, the certification body validates the efficiency of its management system, which helps Lidl reduce and prevent the generation of food waste throughout its supply chain and guarantees the best management of the minimum waste produced.
CSR Director
Lidl Spain
This certification is a recognition of the work that Lidl has been doing for many years to prevent and reduce food waste in our commitment to society and the environment. In addition to all the measures we take throughout the supply chain to manage this type of waste, we try to make our consumers aware of the importance of the correct management of the food they buy, for this reason, for example, we provide a catalog of recipes on our website. We can all contribute to fighting against food waste.
European Commission estimates that 89 million tons of food in good condition is wasted every year in the European Union, producing 42% of it in households. At the same time, as the United Nations points out, one out of nine people on the planet lives in hunger and suffers from malnutrition. Moreover, food wastage also means that all the natural resources used to grow, process, package, transport and market that food are lost.
“We are pleased that companies like Lidl adopt efficient measures to promote the circular economy practices and demonstrate their commitment to the recommendations of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) as well as to the Sustainable Development Goals for the UN 2030 Agenda through certification", explains Teresa Rodon, Commercial Director and Head of CSR and Environment at Bureau Veritas Spain and Portugal.
A SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS MODEL WITH PREVENTIVE AND REACTIVE MEASURES
The Bureau Veritas certificate highlights the different lines of work that Lidl implements in its commitment to food waste. Among its preventive measures are efficient planning and management of its assortment with optimized and adjusted orders. Lidl has an automated system to place the orders that supply its stores and allows optimizing the quantities of merchandise present on its shelves based on their rotation. With this, it is guaranteed that the stores always have the items to sell, minimizing the excess stock of products both in sales room and warehouses. In addition, the company carries out a daily control of dates, applying between 30% and 50% discounts on items with a close expiry date, thus inducing their sale.
Lidl also has post-sale resources, looking for an outlet for those products that are generally close to their expiration date and lack commercial value, consequently, they are not suitable for sale, but are suitable for consumption. In this regard, on a permanent and continuous basis throughout the year, Lidl donates products in 75% of its stores, cooperating with some 40 local NGOs, with the firm commitment to continue increasing its collaborations to cover 100% of its sales centers until the end of 2021. Last year alone, the company donated more than 2 million kg of food. Likewise, it seeks a second life for the surplus of certain products such as its meat, which is destined for pet food, biogas or energy recovery, thus avoiding more waste.
All these measures are marked in Lidl's commitment to reduce food waste by 30% by 2025 and by 50% by 2030.
Contact us to find out more about Management System to Minimize Food Waste
