In policy change advertised as supporting ‘peace and co-operation,’ the Co-op says it will boycott 17 countries, including Israel, claimed to have committed human rights offenses.
The Co-op on Tuesday announced changes to its sourcing policy which include an Israel boycott, in a move allegedly aiming to “support peace and co-operation.”
“Today (24th June) Co-op has announced that it will stop sourcing relationships with countries where there are internationally recognised community-wide human rights abuses and violations of international law,” a company statement read. “This policy has been approved by the Co-op Group Board and coincides with the start of Co-ops Fortnight in the UK.”
The move was prompted by “co-op members [who] have made clear through surveys, engagement and motions that conflict is one of their biggest concerns and that their Co-op should do all it can to advocate and build peace,” the company claimed.
Co-op said that the countries affected would include those for which “there is agreement across respected assessments, such as by the UN and others, that there is consistent behaviour which would constitute community-wide human rights abuses or violations of international law,” and where “the actions Co-op can take would make a difference directly or indirectly to those affected and would alleviate suffering.”
A third criteria was that “the actions Co-op can take would not negatively affect the Co-op’s integrity as a commercially successful co-operative business aligned with co-operative values and principles.”
Co-op explained that following this policy change, “wherever possible, they will not use ingredients in Co-op branded products or sell whole products from 17 countries of concern, which have been identified by the international community. Products and ingredients on the prohibited list are ones which are clearly and solely sourced from the country of origin and include Russian vodka, mangoes from Mali, and carrots from Israel, and will be removed from Co-op shelves and products on a phased approach, starting from June 2025.”
The list of 17 countries includes: Afghanistan, Belarus, Central African Republic, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea), Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Haiti, Iran, Israel, Libya, Mali, Myanmar, Russia, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen.
Debbie White, Chair of the Co-op Group Board said that the policy “is a clear demonstration of our co-operative values in action, where the voices of our members have been listened to and then acted upon. We are committed, where we can, to removing products and ingredients from our shelves which are sourced from those countries where the international consensus demonstrates there is not alignment with what happens in those countries and our co-operative values and principles.”
