Our responsibility

Responsible company

Arla is a farmer-owned global business. For us, it is a given that profitability and responsible business practices go hand in hand, whether buying or selling. It takes commitment, collaboration and integrity.

Responsible Sourcing

Our globally managed spend represents around 83% of the total spend. Currently 96% of our preferred suppliers have signed our Code of Conduct for suppliers.

Progress:

  • 97% of the palm oil purchased during 2018 was segregated and certified according to the RSPO (Round table for Sustainable Palm Oil) due to lack of availability of segregated oil mixes, 3% was covered by RSPO credits. 
  • All the cocoa used by Arla® and Cocio® for branded products is UTZ certified.
  • All the soy used at Arla farms is either organic, ProTerra certified, RTRS (Round table Responsible Soy) or covered by RTRS certificates.
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Responsible marketing

We know that consumers are exposed to a large amount of advertising every day and as a popular dairy producer our products are often central to the lives and tables of our consumers. It is therefore our commitment and responsibility to ensure that all of our products and brands are responsibly marketed; ensuring that our consumers are informed to make the decisions and enjoy our products as part of a balanced and sustainable diet.

On top of this we have chosen to make special provision for children under 12 years of age; committing that we will not market any of our products that do not meet out strict nutrition criteria to children under 12 years of age.

Arla Foods is a member of many industry bodies in different markets; this includes the EU Pledge, a voluntary initiative by leading food and beverage companies to change the way they advertise to children. This is a response from industry leaders to calls made by the EU institutions for the food industry to use commercial communications to support parents in making the right diet and lifestyle choices for their children.

Download Arla's Responsible Marketing Policy

Responsible Political Engagement

As a leading global dairy cooperative, Arla Foods has a responsibility to engage with political stakeholders in an open and transparent way.

We want to ensure there is political support for the dairy sector globally and to facilitate the continuous development of innovative, nutritious and sustainable dairy products that are part of a balanced diet.

Read more about Arla's political engagement

Anti-corruption and bribery

We take a zero-tolerance approach to bribery and corruption and are committed to acting professionally, fairly and with integrity in all our business dealings and relationships wherever we operate.

We have a global anti-bribery directive which sets out the responsibilities in observing and upholding our position on bribery and corruption, and provides information and guidance on how to recognise and deal with bribery and corruption issues. This directive applies to anyone who works for us or on our behalf in any capacity.

Progress:

  • We continue to strengthen our initiatives and have compulsory e-learning for all office colleagues, and in-depth face-to-face training for relevant colleagues. 
  • We address anti-bribery specifically with our suppliers. 
  • We have had zero convictions.
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Farmer Owned

Dairy farmers own Arla. It is our objective to help them obtain the highest possible price for their milk by optimizing the use of raw materials, capital and human resources.

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