Waitrose wades into CSR

Making 100% of its fish independently certified as sustainable and halving the amount of packaging it uses (based on 2005 levels) – all by 2016 – are just two of 12 pledges being made by the British supermarket chain Waitrose and all part of a new initiative called the Waitrose Way Commitments.

The chain, part of the John Lewis Partnership, has been working on the Commitments for the past three years. “It’s a way of showing our customers easily and in a manageable and digestible format what we’re already doing,” Quentin Clark, head of sustainability and ethical sourcing at Waitrose, told Ethical Performance. “There are 12 commitments but they don’t cover everything we do. The commitments are very consumer focused. They address what consumers want to know about. If you want to see everything we do, go look at our CSR Report.”

So, Clark explained, water conservation and green building aren’t referenced in the commitments. “We can’t make people interested in every aspect of our CSR. People don’t always have the time or inclination to understand all the things we do. We, however, are professionally engaged with all the issues.”