Subject of the report

This is the ALDI North Group’s second comprehensive Sustainability Report. By publishing it, we are keeping our promise to provide our internal and external stakeholders with regular and transparent information about our material social, environmental and economic goals and measures. The report is directed in particular towards customers, employees, suppliers and business partners, as well as interested parties in the public domain.

Our Sustainability Report 2017 consists of two main elements: traditional reporting subject matter and appealing stories. The
Management, Key topics and Data & standards overview pages serve as the starting point for diving into the issues covered by the report, where we give an account of where we stand with regard to sustainability and what we hope to achieve in future. Readers also have the option of downloading this information as a compact PDF. In addition, the cr-aldinord.com home page presents readers with stories, both long and brief, that provide an informative look at the sustainability-focused activities of the overall Group (our Highlights). Our aim with this structure is to offer exciting insights and new perspectives in particular to customers and employees and make sustainability issues even more tangible. At the same time, we are shining an even bigger spotlight on ALDI North activities by way of separate country profiles.

[GRI 102-50] The reporting period covers the time from 1 January to 31 December 2017. We have taken account of significant events up to the editorial deadline on 31 March 2018. We also plan to update the stories on the home page outside the reporting period and add to them in order to reflect new developments.

[GRI 102-52] The ALDI North Group publishes a comprehensive Sustainability Report every two years. The next report is scheduled for publication in 2020.

The report is available in German and in seven other languages. When, for reasons of readability, the male form is used to designate persons and functions in this report, this shall naturally be interpreted to include equally the male and female gender. The legal form of companies is also omitted for the same reasons.

[GRI 102-10] At the beginning of 2018, business operations at the regional companies Hoyerswerda und Könnern underwent restructuring; the associated stores remained largely unaffected by the change. Restructuring the local distribution and administration processes shall ensure a better supply set-up for the stores and ultimately for customers. In future, fewer truck transports will be necessary as a result of these efforts thanks to the better utilisation of their capacities. Our supply chain is also gradually changing in favour of greater dialogue with our suppliers, for example as part of the Sustainable Textiles Purchasing project.