Doing the right thing. Contents 2 3 4 7 8 9 0 1 2 1 8 1 0 2 2 2 4 2 6 2 8 2 Foreword What sustainability means to Woolworths Limited Our major commitments and targets Who is Woolworths Limited? Our external engagement Engaging our people Our sustainability priorities Climate change Water Sourcing Packaging Waste Green Stores Implementation and reporting
All of us, every day.
Foreword
Welcome to the Woolworths Limited Sustainability Strategy 007–015. Woolworths has been around for over 80 years. We’re proud of our history and reputation as a successful business. And we know that the world is changing. We recognise that our customers, shareholders, staff and other stakeholders now expect us to be aware of and respond to the challenges of sustainability. For an organisation as large and diverse as Woolworths, the issues around sustainability are complex and the challenges tough. But we’ve never shied away from dealing with tough issues before, and that has contributed greatly to our achievements in the past. The way we see it, sustainability is about doing the right thing. At Woolworths we have always been very proud of our strong values. As one of Australia’s largest companies, the changes we make can have an enormous impact – on our shareholders, our suppliers, our staff, our customers, and our local communities. But more than anything, sustainable behaviour just makes good business sense. We know we have a lot of work to do on these issues. And we don’t have all the answers now. But we are serious about asking the right questions. We don’t see sustainability as a stand-alone activity. Instead, it is a process that we are embedding in everything we do. With 180,000 employees working in almost every city and town across Australia and New Zealand, the task of changing our behaviour is a big challenge. But it’s a challenge I believe we can meet,