We set clear requirements for suppliers, promote animal welfare through standards and our involvement in various initiatives and want to transform the agricultural and meat industry as well as the food retail sector with innovative approaches.
We are committed to improving animal welfare standards, for example as a founding member of the Initiative for Animal Welfare in Germany. Every year, 753 million farm animals benefit from improved husbandry conditions.
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We are constantly expanding our organic and regional product ranges (see focus topic Organic and Regionalism), as well as plant-based alternatives. At REWE and PENNY in Germany, we currently offer over 1,900 products with REWE Bio + vegan and Food for Future, while at BILLA and BILLA PLUS 1,620 purely plant-based private label products are available.
By the end of 2024, all 350 REWE service counter in Bavaria will stock almost 100 per cent meat1 from husbandry system levels 3 and 4.
We are completely converting our private label products in barn and free-range systems to gender determination in the hatching egg (selection).2
We are pioneering. In 2023, for example, we launched the dual-purpose chicken project to offer organic eggs from dual-purpose chickens in the organic supply chain at REWE in Germany by 2024 in the Southwest region. Meat products are to follow in the future.
At the DERTOUR Group
- we check providers for compliance with established animal welfare standards. A portfolio analysis was carried out in 2023. Based on the resulting risk profiles, 150 remote audits have been carried out on an ongoing basis since then. On-site audits are also planned.
- we are, for example, fighting against poaching in the Pilanesberg National Park in South Africa with the “Tiere für Tiere” (animals for animals) project using wildlife detection dogs.
Regional programmes
In Germany and Austria, we use regional programmes to promote improved husbandry systems on site and shorter transport routes. 42 Regional meat programmes at REWE are already implementing animal welfare improvements in husbandry systems 2, 3 and 4.
We have already achieved a lot, but we do not stop there. We continuously monitor the efficiency of our measures in order to anchor animal welfare in our supply chains and promote it at the holiday destinations of the DERTOUR Group.
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For 15 years, we have been promoting animal welfare in our organic supply chains through our Partnership with Naturland.
We define minimum requirements for suppliers that go beyond the legally required level – at BILLA in Austria, this also applies to the organic and “Fair zum Tier” (Fair to the animal) product range. For example, we do not use eggs from caged hens or goose and duck meat originating from live-plucking and force-feeding production sites.
At BILLA PLUS and BILLA in Austria, the total fresh meat service counter has been converted to animal welfare and thus meets either organic or at least the “Fair zum Tier” (Fair to the animal) criteria.
We offer 100 per cent of conventional pasture milk with the animal welfare label “Für Mehr Tierschutz” (For More Animal Welfare) from the German Animal Welfare Association.
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Almost 100 per cent of our conventional pork comes from Germany3, and 100 per cent of our fresh milk comes from Germany and Austria.
Our private label free-range and organic eggs at REWE and our private label organic eggs at PENNY come from Germany.
The DERTOUR Group has completely removed elephant rides from its programme.
Competence Centre for Agriculture
At the end of January 2023, we founded this committee of agricultural experts from science, agriculture and industry, which is unique in Germany. The aim is to develop concrete projects and measures to help shape the transformation of a sustainable German agriculture, with a particular focus on animal welfare.
