Corporate Responsibility

Products and services

 
 

Meeting our customer’s needs is at the core of METRO’s business strategy. We aim to provide consumers with products and services that meet their expectations and we work toward a more responsible supply chain.

 

Responsible procurement

Vision-2026

Our ambition is to implement responsible practices within our supply chain to offer our customers products that respect workers and the environment. This long-term task requires continuous issue monitoring, close collaboration with our suppliers and rigorous implementation programs.

Responsible procurement is a fundamental aspect of our business.

We also know how important it is to our customers. We want to work with suppliers that share our commitment to responsible practices and act on this commitment. To guide us, we have developed several programs and policies that are science-based, rigorous and in line with industry best practices; they are a core part of our ongoing business operations. Click here to view them.

ESG data collection program

We believe in fostering lasting partnerships based on transparency and continuous improvement.                         

Sphera

In 2023, we partnered with Sphera, formerly SupplyShift, a cloud-based platform supported by a team of ESG experts, to collect and analyze data from our suppliers to assess their performance against all the principles of our Supplier Code of Conduct for responsible procurement.

The evaluation process involves sending a questionnaire to our suppliers via the Supply Chain Sustainability cloud-based platform. Sphera then verifies the documents suppliers submit to ensure their validity and relevance. In 2024, we revised this questionnaire to offer our suppliers greater clarity and flexibility in disclosing their practices. Since our partnership with Sphera began, we have assessed 19% of our active suppliers, representing 60% of our purchases. We have found that 91% of these purchases are made from suppliers who meet our expectations.

Respect for workers

We expect our suppliers to provide us with products and services based on practices that ensure workers are treated with dignity, respect and equity in a healthy and safe work environment that provides decent conditions and is free of abuse.

In April 2024, we published our first Report under the Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act, which sets out the measures METRO took during fiscal 2023 to prevent and mitigate the risk of forced labour or child labour in its operations and within its supply chain.

Animal welfare

We prioritize animal health and welfare by ensuring our suppliers adhere to the Codes of Practice for the Care and Handling of Farm Animals developed by the National Farm Animal Care Council (NFACC) or an equivalent standard.

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In 2024, cage-free eggs represented 34% of our total product offering in the whole egg category and were available in 95% of our stores. Four new products have been added to our Life Smart private brand, in which all whole eggs are organic and cage-free.

The average conversion rate of our Canadian pork suppliers to gestation crate-free operations is 65%, which represents the majority of our purchases. We are closely monitoring this transition with the goal of reaching 100% by 2029, as per our suppliers’ commitment.

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Image chicken breast

In line with the higher welfare standards of the Better Chicken Commitment, 100% of the chicken we purchase from producers and slaughterhouses is sourced from farms that meet NFACC’s stocking density requirement, and 78% is rendered insensible through controlled atmosphere stunning.

For more details about METRO’S commitments, please read our Animal Welfare Statement.

Deforestation

Because beef and palm oil production are recognized as significant drivers of deforestation worldwide*, we want to avoid products from areas with a high risk of deforestation.

In 2024, we have documented the origin of 97% of our products and have found that none come from high-risk areas. Canada and the United States are our primary beef sources.

We also assessed 97% of our private brand food products containing palm oil, and found that 84% were certified by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil.

*Source: World Resources Institute, 2024

 

Sustainable fisheries and aquaculture

We recognize that the health of the oceans and the preservation of natural resources are important issues, as much for the sustainability of fish and seafood stocks, the protection of biodiversity and ecosystems, as for the conditions in which workers operate.

Our Sustainable Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy (PDF) covers fresh, frozen and canned fish and seafood. It provides a framework for our sourcing practices and is based on five principles that foster responsible procurement:

Healthy species icon

Healthy species

Responsible operating methods icon

Responsible operating methods

Product traceability icon

Product traceability

Respect for workers icon

Respect for workers

Socioeconomic development icon

Socioeconomic development

Traceability

Product traceability is at the heart of our approach. In 2024, we obtained traceability of 97% of our purchases.

logo produit de source responsable

We continue to include our “Responsibly sourced product” label on our private brands’ products to promote the principles of our policy to our customers. We also support globally recognized third-party sustainable seafood certifications benchmarked by the Global Sustainable Seafood Initiative (GSSI).

By disclosing complete traceability for all its fish and seafood products through its Ocean Disclosure Project profile, METRO contributes to reinforcing transparency and promoting responsible fishing and aquaculture practices.

For more details on our achievements, see the 2024 Corporate Responsibility Report (PDF).

Responsible cosmetics

Our Responsible Cosmetics Statement outlines our approach in this area. Responsible cosmetics, as we define them, are products for which the environmental and social dimensions, including human health, ethics and animal welfare considerations, have been taken into account to minimize the impacts associated with the ingredients that make up the product and its packaging.

To learn more about our local purchasing initiatives, visit the Communities page.

 

Health, nutrition and well-being

Vision-2026

Our ambition is to support our customers in their daily actions to care for their health and well-being by offering products that meet their aspirations and nutritional needs and providing professional services to help them take concrete actions for their health. We intend to continue to play an active role in supporting public health through our network of neighborhood stores and pharmacies.

Life smart

Product offers

For several years, METRO has been working to offer more products promoting healthy eating in its banners.

In 2024, we increased our offering of private brand products promoting healthy eating by almost 14%, for a total of nearly 600 products.

Empowering our customers

In January 2021, Metro launched in Québec and Ontario the My Health my Choices program, a tool that helps customers find products suited to their lifestyles, values and health needs.

In 2024, we focused our efforts on making organic, natural and gluten-free products accessible in all our banners, both within our private brands and national brands. By offering our customers the best value for these product categories, we increased their visibility in flyers and in-store and strengthened our promotional programs.

My health my choices
vaccination

Professional services in our pharmacy network

Across our network of 639 pharmacies, pharmacists and their teams play an essential front-line role in their communities. Their scope of practice has been broadened in recent years, and a bill was introduced in June 2024 in Québec to enable greater agility and reduce pressure on front-line care. We continued to facilitate access to care for patients across our network in Québec, Ontario and New Brunswick.

For more details on our initiatives, see the 2024 Corporate Responsibility Report (PDF).

 

Packaging and printed materials

Vision-2026

Our ambition is to optimize our packaging and printed materials by reducing their use, relying on optimal design, choosing environmentally responsible materials and facilitating their recovery and recycling. These practices aim to reduce the use of resources use, limit product losses and diminish waste generation, while contributing to the fight against single-use plastic.

Since the early 2010s, we have launched a range of initiatives to optimize our packaging and printed materials and reduce their environmental footprint.

With our Packaging and Printed Materials Management Policy (PDF), launched in 2019 and updated in 2022, we implemented measures to reduce the use of resources, limit product losses and generate less waste while contributing to the global movement to reduce single-use plastics. It guides the actions of our teams and suppliers in the effective management of our packaging and printed materials in all our activities.

Principles

Our Packaging and Printed Materials Management Policy is based on four principles:

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Reduce the use of packaging and printed materials

Reduce at the source and avoid over-packaging

Encourage reuse

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Implement optimal design

Reduce the mass or volume of packaging and printed materials

Use the right quantities of materials

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Select ecoresponsible materials

Give preference to recycled materials

Use virgin materials from sustainable sources

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Facilitate recovery and recycling

Give preference to recyclable materials

Communicate instructions for recovery

2024 achievements

Reduce single-use plastic

As of 2024, all meals in our Metro Go ready-to-eat offer in Québec have been sold in aluminum containers. This transition has enabled us to replace 91 tonnes of plastic with aluminum, a material that can be recycled indefinitely*, and whose recycling process is much less energy-intensive than that of plastic .

*Sources: The Aluminum Association, 2022 and Association of Plastic Recyclers, 2020

Optimize private brand packaging

We continue to reduce the environmental impact of our private brand packaging, by replacing several categories of packaging with recycled and recyclable materials or by increasing postconsumer materials in our packaging.

We aim to use recyclable and compatible materials that align with the sorting and recycling infrastructures of the provinces in which we operate. In 2024, 94% of our packaging components were recyclable, compostable or reusable.

To support our private brand suppliers, we also offer a design guide and training module on sustainable packaging. In 2022, METRO made responsible packaging training mandatory every two years for all private brand food suppliers.

See the training module and the eco-design guide (PDF)

Reusable containers: a groundbreaking pilot project in Canada

We are always on the lookout for sustainable alternatives to reduce our environmental footprint while supporting the circular economy. Since October 2023, the Metro banner has been participating in two-year pilot project in collaboration with the Circular Innovation Council and other grocers and food companies. This innovative program aims to test a unique model for sharing reusable containers between various players to reduce single-use plastic packaging. For the duration of the pilot, customers at one of our Ottawa Metro stores can purchase certain products in reusable containers free of charge and with no deposit required.

R Use Ottawa

For more details on our achievements, see the 2024 Corporate Responsibility Report.