Ahold Delhaize has announced the appointment of Jan Ernst de Groot to the newly created role of chief sustainability officer.
Ernst de Groot will be responsible for the success of the company’s integral vision, strategy and goals relative to all aspects of environmental sustainability, healthy eating, social impact, ethics, human rights and governance
Frans Muller, CEO of Ahold Delhaize, stated, “For a long time, sustainability has a central position in our organisation. It is one of our four key strategic focus areas, and a critical driver of our purpose: Eat well. Save time. Live better.
“Our activity and performance in this area are attracting increasing interest from customers, (future) associates, investors and other stakeholders. With the appointment of Jan Ernst, we ensure that the full scope and dimension of sustainability and ESG are holistically represented at the executive committee level.”
An Experienced Professional
Jan Ernst de Groot is an experienced professional in the Dutch and international sustainability community, with a track record of leading transformative sustainability programmes at companies and supervisory roles at NGOs and civil society organisations.
He will continue his other, separate accountabilities as Ahold Delhaize’s chief legal officer, an executive committee role he has held since 2016.
Commenting on the appointment, Jan Ernst commented, “At Ahold Delhaize, we want to lead the transition to sustainable food. I look forward to working with Daniella Vega, our SVP of health and sustainability, and other senior leaders across our organisation to further define the right, ambitious and future-oriented strategy and ensure the execution and delivery of our targets, for the betterment of society as a whole.”
Read More: Ahold Delhaize Brings Net-Zero Target Forward To 2040
Ahold Delhaize's sustainability strategy is rooted in the belief that healthy and sustainable products should be available and accessible to all.
The company added that its approach ensures its decisions are grounded in doing the right thing for people and the planet, as it believes that the global health and climate crisis are intrinsically linked.
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