The Co-op is to stop sourcing goods from Israel, Iran and 15 other countries where it says there are “internationally recognised” rights abuses and violations of international law.
The mutual, which operates about 2,300 grocery stores in the UK, has drawn up a list of about 100 products affected by the change, including Israeli carrots and mangos from Mali.
Other countries covered by the ban, which will be gradually implemented from this month, include Russia, Syria, Belarus, Afghanistan, Myanmar and Sudan The Co-op said the ban would cover ingredients for its own-label products as well as whole items.
The retailer is unlikely to suffer a significant financial impact from its decision becauseit sources most of its products from western Europe.
The Co-op, which is known for its efforts to do business ethically, including selling Fairtrade products and supporting local social projects, had already stopped selling Russian products in March 2022, shortly after Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The Co-op said the new list had been compiled by independent assessment of “where 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”.
The retailer said the move came after its members had made clear through surveys and motions at its annual meetings that conflict was one of their biggest concerns and that the Co-op “should do all it can to advocate and build peace”.
However, the Co-op said it would only take action that “would make a difference directly or indirectly to those affected and would alleviate suffering” and it “would not negatively affect the Co-op’s integrity as a commercially successful co-operative business”.
Debbie White, the chair of the Co-op Group board, said the policy was 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.”
