Migros introduces sustainability scale on products
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A sustainability scale is now listed directly on the packaging of all Migros brands. This rates the various dimensions of sustainability, such as animal welfare or climate, with 1 to 5 stars. Customers can thus see at first glance whether the product meets their requirements. Migros thus creates comprehensive transparency in the topic of sustainability.
"We are not 100% sustainable. But 100% transparent". Under this motto, Migros will in future evaluate all products of its approximately 250 own brands in the most important dimensions of sustainability. This will make it immediately clear to customers that an M-Classic chicken, for example, scores well in animal welfare but less so in climate. The new M-Check makes this contradiction transparent, says Marketing Manager Matthias Wunderlin: "We don't hide the negative sustainability aspects of a product either. On the one hand, this enables our customers to shop in a self-determined manner; on the other hand, this complete transparency is also an incentive for Migros."
A compass in the sustainability jungle
The sustainability scale works like a hotel rating: if the product receives five stars in animal welfare, for example, it does very well; if it receives only one star, there is a lot of potential for improvement. For this, up to ten different factors are assessed and rated, including outdoor exercise, housing, the use of medications or transport. The entire life cycle assessment of the product is included in the climate calculation: From cultivation to the use of water and fertilizer, to transport and packaging. The star rating is based on the entire Migros product range. A piece of beef therefore never achieves more than one star in climate because of the high greenhouse gas emissions compared to a cucumber.
"WWF welcomes Migros' goal of creating more transparency for customers in the area of sustainability with the new M-Check. With this disclosure, it enables customers to shop more consciously. After all, one third of the consumption-related environmental impact in Europe is due to what we eat," says Thomas Vellacott, Managing Director of WWF Switzerland.
The evaluation system is based on scientific principles and was developed for Migros by renowned partners. All assessment criteria can be viewed transparently online.
More than 100 products already marked with the new M-Check
Animal products such as meat and milk will be the first to receive the M-Check. The areas of animal welfare and climate will be assessed. Other dimensions of sustainability will be added later. By 2025, all of Migros' own brands - including non-food - will have been given the new M-Check. This corresponds to around 80 percent of the entire Migros range.
