The ALDI Social Standards in Production are our definitive standard for cooperation with business partners for our food and non-food products. They were first published in 2010 and were further revised in 2014. These standards are based on the following:

• Standards of the International Labour Organization (ILO)
• Human Rights Declaration of the United Nations
• UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
• UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
• OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises

The ALDI Social Standards in Production are contractually binding for all business partners and we expect them to communicate and implement these requirements, in addition to all legal requirements, at the production facilities and then monitor compliance against them. We strive to ensure that our business partners are able to fulfil our requirements and we collaborate with them in order to achieve continuous improvements.

In order to be able to monitor compliance with these social standards at production facility level and to continue to foster these together with our business partners, we have developed and implemented our Social Monitoring Programme. Business partners are integrated into this programme according to an assessment and prioritisation of their respective supply chain risks (based on commodity groups and sourcing countries).

All main production facilities in high risk areas used for the manufacturing of ALDI products have to have a valid third party audit. On-site audits performed by independent experts are a key component of the programme. ALDI recognises audits and certificates according to the standards including:

• the amfori - Business Social Compliance Initiative (BSCI)
• the Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit (SMETA)
• the International Council of Toy Industries (ICTI)
• SA8000
• Better Work
• the Code of Conduct of Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC)
• Responsible Business Alliance (RBA)
• BAP Enhanced Social Accountability (BAP SA)

Following every audit, a Corrective Action Plan (CAP) is developed which sets out an individualised timeline for eliminating any issues that may have been found. Our business partners are obliged to implement the measures together with the production facility’s management. Our CR departments closely monitor the process to ensure successful remediation.

We consider third party social audits to be an important first step in gathering social compliance information about our production facilities and initiating improvements. However, we are aware that they may not always provide a true picture of working conditions. From our experience, we know that on-site presence can lead to greater transparency and fosters strong partnership with business partners and production facilities. Since 2011 we have been supplementing third-party audits with our own on-site visits for certain high-risk commodity groups.

These ALDI Social Assessments (ASAs) are assessments of main production facilities that are carried out by ALDI employees together with external auditors and business partner representatives. These ASAs mainly take place in amfori BSCI risk countries.

Following every assessment, if necessary, a Corrective Action Plan is agreed which lays out an individualised timeline for eliminating potential issues. Our business partners are obliged to implement the measures together with the production facility’s management. Our CR departments closely monitor the progress and successful remediation.

As the majority of our products are sourced from business partners who commission the manufacture of the products, establishing strategic long-term relationships with business partners with a good CR performance is an essential factor in achieving our sustainability goals in the supply chain.

We have therefore adopted an annual Corporate Responsibility Supplier Evaluation (CRSE), an approach that goes beyond conducting audits. The CRSE is a comparable and transparent evaluation based on quantitative and qualitative indicators. The indicators focussing on our business partners’ social and environmental compliance management systems as well as their production facilities’ CR performance are derived from our CR Requirements, which form part of every contract.

To ensure transparency, we share the evaluation results including a comprehensive status quo analysis with business partners. This analysis is then used by our business partners to improve their social and environmental management systems throughout the year. To support our business partners to better understand and implement our CR requirements, they are invited to participate in capacity building activities.

The results of this evaluation increasingly influence our buying decisions. The CRSE supports long-term relationships with those business partners who demonstrate a strong CR record and provides incentives for continuous improvement.

We attach great importance to sustainable production conditions in the manufacturing of food and non-food products. Supply chain transparency is the foundation for all our sustainability measures. Without the knowledge where our products come from, we cannot ensure compliance with our requirements, analyse risks, monitor or implement projects. We work with our business partners to increase the transparency of our supply chains so that we have a better understanding concerning the origin of every product we sell and the raw materials we use for our products.