International Year of Biodiversity 2010 – Campaign Week for Sustainability

Cologne, 15.09.10

REWE Group commits itself to protection of species diversity

Within the framework of its sustainability strategy REWE Group is actively engaged in the preservation of species diversity with projects, amongst others, in Germany and Central America. The trading company is currently presenting this commitment to the public through its campaign week for sustainability, and is making it even more transparent for customers in Germany and in Austria through numerous campaigns in selected supermarkets.

Through its commitment to preserving biodiversity, amongst other things, REWE Group aims to minimise monocultures in the cultivation of raw materials or to restore habitats for flora and fauna that have already been damaged in cooperation with environmental organisations such as the international Lake Constance Foundation, German organisations, such as the German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GTZ) and industrial partners – for instance Chiquita. REWE Group faces up to these challenges through three different approaches: In the operational approach an external partner is directly involved to solve a problem. For the cooperative approach REWE Group seeks an industrial partner to work together on optimising the sustainability of a product. Finally REWE Group pursues a company-internal approach whereby the production companies, such as the bakery "Glocken Bäckerei" is integrated into the operations. At a press conference on biodiversity REWE Group is presenting today (15 September) three of the numerous projects to serve as examples.

The "Blossoming Lake Constance" campaign
In the area of its private label products the trading company has, for instance, launched in spring a project in cooperation with fruit farmers in the Lake Constance region. "Because bees and other insects cannot find enough food, we at REWE Group together with the Lake Constance Foundation and the Vertriebsgemeinschaft Obst vom Bodensee (marketing organisation for fruit from the Lake Constace region) have started a pilot project to fill the summer gap – the period between June and September when it is difficult for insects to find  blossom – and hence contribute towards the biodiversity of the Lake Constance region," explained Dr. Josef Lüneburg-Wolthaus from Strategic Quality Assurance at REWE Group regarding this operational approach. This initially involves the testing of different measures at ten pilot projects between Stockach, Friedrichshafen and Ravensburg, to improve the availability of food for bees, bumblebees and butterflies and to create new habitats for insects. To achieve this, areas of blossoming plants are created, hedges are planted and nesting aids for wild bees are set up. In the medium-term there are going to be involved more than the eleven fruit farms currently participating as in the end even all other farms benefit from the pollination by the honey bees and wild bees. The projects are aimed at increasing sustainability in the whole region through improved environmental management: "For us environmental management is of key significance for improving the environmental balance of the intensive fruit farming in the Lake Constance in the long-term. After all, we cannot make decisive progress simply through meadows full of flowers. Through the cooperation with the marketing organisation for fruit from the Lake Constance region and REWE Group we want to show that environmental protection and conservation of natural resources together with the economic utilisation of natural resources and the company produce a tangible benefit", explained Patrick Trötschler, deputy head of the Lake Constance Foundation. The results up to now are so encouraging that REWE Group plans to implement the project in further German fruit growing regions, such as the "Alten Land" in the southwest of Hamburg.

New habitat for leatherback turtles and manatees threatened by extinction
In Central America REWE Group is pushing forward with another project for environmental protection and the preservation of species diversity in cooperation with its partners Chiquita, the Costa Rican banana producers' association (Corbana) and the German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GTZ), which works on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). Around 80 percent of bananas sold at REWE come from Panama and Costa Rica. Consequently the partners are committed to ensuring that endangered animal species and biotopes in the Panama province of Bocas del Toro are protected in a long-term project with the support of the local inhabitants. In this way REWE Group is contributing towards the creation of new habitats and the protection of endangered species through the renaturalisation of a 120-hectar area of farmland in the delta of the Rivers San San and Changuinola in the middle of the San San Pond Sak nature conservation area. "A local environmental organisation is implementing the reforestation scheme to ensure that a new piece of natural mangrove can be created through professional planting of different species of trees", commented Dr. Josef Lüneburg-Wolthaus. He noted that the renaturalisation was particularly important for preserving the flora and fauna in this unique nature conservation area, which is one of the most valuable biotopes in the world and is internationally recognised as a UNESCO biosphere and Ramsar wetland. "Up to now around 10,000 plant seeds have been collected, a tree nursery has been set up and a total of approximately 2,100 trees planted", explained George Jaksch Senior Director Corporate Responsibility and Public Affairs Chiquita International S.G. The lagoons of San San Pond are not only home to one of the largest remaining colonies of manatees in Central America. For decades turtles have been coming to these shores to lay their eggs. They were extremely endangered by people hunting them and stealing their eggs. Careful protection measures which were implemented within the framework of REWE' tropical project are preventing a further reduction in their population. Protected breeding grounds have up to now enabled 4,200 leatherback turtles to be bred and returned to their natural habitat. Furthermore, REWE Group and Chiquita have jointly assumed social responsibility by both companies pressing for better living conditions and the maintenance of the traditions of the inhabitants of the region. "New sources of income will be created for the multiethnic local communities and the inhabitants' environmental awareness will be increased. For the success and sustainability of the project it is important that the population, the local authorities and the environmental organisations of the region are integrated – and where possible involved", added Ms Gabriela Pico from GTZ, a project manager responsible for development partnerships with industry.

Regionally-sourced raw materials
REWE Group commits itself to biodiversity in a completely different way in terms of its own production companies. Instead of buying grain on the spot market, which sometimes has diffuse origins and comes from monoculture farming, REWE's own bakery Glocken Bäckerei, relies on basic supplies of flour from local and regional partners. Currently REWE Group is cooperating with three flour mills in Bavaria, which are obligated to process grain from local and regional production on behalf of Glocken Bäckerei. "In this way we support domestic grain farmers who cultivate their crops on much smaller areas than in Eastern Europe, for example. This type of small-scale farming alters the ratio between crop fields and the strips of fallow land around them", noted Dr. Ludger Breloh, in charge of Organic Products, Fruit and Vegetables at the Strategic Purchasing division of REWE Group. The large strips of fallow land around crop fields with their wide range of food provide a habitat for bees, bumblebees, butterflies and many other species.

Since spring 2010 REWE Group's private label products whose production, processing or use places far less burden on the environment and society are marked with the new sustainability label PRO PLANET. The trading company wants to use this labelling system to provide orientation help for its customers. The apples from the Lake Constance region and the bread and baked products from Glocken Bäckerei receive this label, since they are produced under the defined biodiversity aspects. The consumer can hence directly contribute towards the protection and promotion of species diversity. Since the start with strawberries in April, which was the first PRO PLANET product to be introduced at REWE, around 80 further products have been added to the portfolio in REWE's supermarkets, toom hypermarkets, PENNY discount stores and toom DIY stores – including tomatoes, textiles and paper products. All these products have tangible positive ecological and social impacts.

Within the framework of a campaign week for sustainability REWE Group is presenting to the public its current commitment to sustainability. Through this campaign the Group is providing consumers in Germany with more transparency regarding its broad-reaching effort on behalf of the environment and the conservation of resources, for the promotion of green products and assuming responsibility for employees and society. The prime focus of the campaign week is the topic "environmentally and socially compatible consumption" and the new label PRO PLANET. In many stores and travel agencies as well as the head offices of the Group in Germany and Austria information and campaigns are being used to draw attention to its commitment to sustainability – and hence also the promotion of biodiversity.

With a turnover of more than 50 billion euros and 330,000 employees, REWE Group is one of the leading trading and travel and tourism companies in Germany and Europe. The company, that was established more than 80 years ago, is present in 16 countries with more than 15,000 stores. The sales lines include supermarkets and hypermarkets, such as REWE, toom and BILLA, the discounter PENNY, the toom DIY stores and the electronics store ProMarkt. The travel and tourism division comprises the tour operators ITS, JAHN REISEN and TJAEREBORG as well as DERTOUR, MEIER’S WELTREISEN and ADAC REISEN, and about 2,500 travel agencies.  

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REWE GROUP-Corporate Communications
Tel.: 0221 - 149-1050
E-Mail: presse(at)rewe-group.com

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