Carrefour is taking further steps to improve food quality, implementing additional organic farming and high-welfare practices in its supply chains.
The French retail giant is ‘experimenting’ with the elimination of all chemical pesticides on new lines of fresh produce, with the company offering pesticide-free potatoes, apples, peaches and nectarines. It represents a continuation of a process which began with cases of tomatoes, kiwi fruit, broccoli and strawberries in 2015.
Following on from the creation of France’s first ‘antibiotic-free’ range of chicken SKUs in 2013, Carrefour France will also offer veal and rabbit product lines free of the antimicrobial drugs.
Furthermore, 2017 will see the introduction of the first animal-welfare certification process in France, partnering with an independent organisation, farmers and NGO Welfarm. The retailer said it will also involve the ‘introduction – for the first time in retail – of blockchain technology, used to enable traceability of its animal product lines, guaranteeing consumers as much transparency as possible.’
Moreover, Carrefour has established a programme which will apply to 300 French farms by 2020. According to the retailer, it will ‘accelerate the adoption of organic farming practices, working alongside producers: as the leading general distributor of organic products in France, Carrefour is introducing a programme that will involve contractually setting volumes and prices for periods of three to five years.’
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Peter Donnelly. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine
