Across the world, around one whole truckload of plastic is dumped into the oceans every minute – that ends up being some eight million kilos of plastic a year. Through UV radiation and waves, the plastic is ground into little particles that are steadily turning our oceans into a plastic soup. The Plastic Soup Foundation in the Netherlands has made it their goal to stop this development through information campaigns, educational efforts and innovative solutions. We are on board!
Helping fight the global problem of plastic waste – that was what we had in mind when we decided in 2017 to discontinue the disposable plastic bag at ALDI North. These bags will steadily disappear from our stores by the end of 2018. The switch to our new reusable shopping bag is currently under way. As it will take some time before the plastic bags have been withdrawn entirely, the price for disposable shopping bags in the Netherlands has been raised in the meantime from 15 to 25 cents. The majority of the additional proceeds will be donated to the Plastic Soup Foundation.
“We want future generations to live in a clean and healthy environment. The Plastic Soup Foundation’s new educational programme teaches children in a playful way how important it is to protect our seas and oceans.”
Nadie Winde, Manager Corporate Responsibility in the Netherlands
The foundation used the money to introduce a new free educational programme for primary schools in 2018. The programme is based on a Plastic Soup Box that contains exciting teaching materials about plastic waste. The schools also receive a special issue of the children’s magazine Kidsweek and access to an online platform with digital lessons, videos and games. Through the new educational programme, the Plastic Soup Foundation aims to inform ten thousand children about the problem of plastic waste.
SDG
People from 117 nations work in the nine European countries in which we are represented. This diversity is a part of the ALDI North Group. It enriches our working relationships and reflects the diversity of our customers.
We align our actions with our core values: simplicity, responsibility and reliability. These values also express the way the ALDI North Group sees and approaches compliance.
We take responsibility for safe and fair working conditions and compliance with environmental standards wherever we can make a difference
Being an ALDI employee above all means embracing our shared values: simplicity, responsibility and reliability. That is what we stand for in all we do, wherever we are located.
The trust of our customers is our most valuable asset. That is why we listen carefully to what they want. For more than 100 years, we have consistently and systematically tailored our products and services towards the demands of our customers.
Taking responsibility for the health and safety of employees in the workplace is part of the ethos of the ALDI North Group companies
We know that there is still a lot to do when it comes to animal welfare, but we are on the right track, as confirmed by two recent publications on commitment to animal welfare in the food industry
The roughly 69,000 ALDI employees make a decisive contribution to the sustained success of the ALDI North Group. All of them can be proud to work for the ALDI North Group. In exchange, they receive secure working conditions, attractive framework conditions and long-term career development prospects
We take responsibility for the protection of our environment and its natural resources. As a retailer, reducing waste and dedicating ourselves to fighting food losses play a central role.
