MELBOURNE, Tuesday 12 November 2024 — More than 60 people from some of Australia’s biggest environmental organisations have protested at a pop-up ‘deforestation zone’ outside the Coles annual general meeting in Melbourne, demanding the supermarket giant publicly commit to ending deforestation in its supply chain.
Joined by executives of the Wilderness Society, Greenpeace Australia Pacific and the Australian Conservation Foundation, the group staged a live ‘deforestation zone’ with bulldozers and koalas and displayed an eight-metre-long banner that read “Coles, take deforestation off the shelves” while handing out information flyers to shareholders as they filed into the meeting.
The group is demanding Coles, one of Australia’s biggest beef purchasers, commit to a deforestation-free supply chain by 2025. Beef production is the leading cause of deforestation in Australia, fuelling the biodiversity crisis and pushing the koala, already endangered in Australia, to the brink of extinction.
Coles is isolated as Australia’s only major supermarket without a deforestation-free policy after Woolworths, ALDI and fast food giant McDonald’s all committed to eliminating beef from deforested areas from their supply chains this year.
Chief executive of Greenpeace Australia Pacific, David Ritter, said:
“Coles executives have allowed the company to fall behind its competitors on deforestation, raising big questions about its commitment to sustainability and competitiveness.
“Woolworths and Aldi have pledged to go deforestation-free by 2025, proving supermarkets can offer deforestation-free beef without compromising customer value. Coles customers and shareholders deserve to know why the company is wilfully lagging on such a crucial issue, with major risks for shareholder value as well as our precious forests and koalas.”
Chief executive of the Australian Conservation Foundation, Kelly O’Shanassy, said:
“Every Australian should be able to walk into Coles and know they are not contributing to Australia’s nature crisis, with more than 2000 Australian animals and plants now on our threatened species list. Australia has the highest rate of deforestation in the developed world, largely driven by the expansion of beef pasture. While most beef producers in Australia are doing the right thing, it’s time for Coles to have their back and buy beef from deforestation-free farms. Coles is the only big supermarket without a commitment to stop bulldozing the bush for beef.”
National campaigns director of the Wilderness Society, Amelia Young, said:
“Coles has a deforestation problem. But it appears Coles is not even checking if the products on their shelves come from forest destruction, leaving their customers in the dark about whether they are buying everyday groceries that are sourced from deforestation.
“Recent research shows that the majority of Australians expect the major supermarkets to make sure the products they buy and sell don’t come from Australian forest destruction. Coles has a responsibility to their customers to ensure shoppers don’t have to worry about their groceries coming at the expense of native wildlife, like the koala and swift parrot, and their forest habitat. Every day, native forest and bushland is destroyed to make some beef and timber products. Until Coles cleans up its act, it is complicit in Australia’s deforestation crisis. Coles must commit to going deforestation-free—for people, nature and climate.”
—ENDS—