Co-op stores across the borough will stop selling products from Israel, identified as committing community-wide human rights abuses or violating international law, following a full board review.
Under its new sourcing policy, approved by the Co-op Group Board and launched during Co-op Fortnight, the retailer will no longer stock goods or ingredients that are solely sourced from 17 countries identified by the international community, including Israel, Russia and Mali.
It is understood that products to be removed include Russian vodka, mangoes from Mali and carrots from Israel, with the removal process will begin in June 2025 and will follow a phased approach in line with existing contracts and seasonal crop cycles.
The retailer added that affected suppliers have already been contacted.
The changes form part of the “Hate Divides Communities, Co-operation Builds Them” campaign, a response to repeated member feedback urging the society to prioritise peace and ethical trade.
According to the Co-op, the decision was shaped by criteria such as whether international assessments agree on the scale of violations, whether Co-op’s actions can make a meaningful impact, and whether its integrity as a co-operative business is preserved.
It follows the grocery retailer’s members last month voting in favour of a motion for the retailer to stop selling products from Israel.
The non-binding motion was passed at the convenience giant’s AGM on 17 May. Nearly three quarters (73%) of members supported the motion, which urged the board to demonstrate “moral courage and leadership” by removing Israeli goods from the shelves.
Co-op chair Debbie White said: “This policy, which has been developed over the past year… is 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.”
She added the changes are a natural next step for a business with a longstanding record in Fairtrade and ethical sourcing.
The retailer’s list of 17 “countries of concern” includes Afghanistan, Belarus, Central African Republic, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea), Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Haiti, Iran, Israel, Libya, Mali, Myanmar, Russia, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen.
A great decision. Well done Co-op
Then I shall stop shopping at the co-op
Oh who cares
I wish commercial organisations would keep out of politics. I don’t care about their agendas and I don’t want them ramming down my throat,
There’s no guarantee it’ll happen as the Co op have a history of hypocrisy on so called boycotts.
They claimed to not sell South African produce during the apartheid years but Arnold Co op (yes, there was on then) sold South African bananas. When questioned why the manager said it was down to the individual shop manager to decide. Clearly their public stance on it was just bluster to jump on the free – publicity bandwagon.