Dive Brief:
- Hannaford Supermarkets announced Wednesday that it is the first supermarket to join the Northeast Organic Family Farm Partnership in an effort to support organic dairy farms in New England and New York.
- For the coming year, the grocer has committed to promoting four brands that are part of the Northeast Organic Family Farm Partnership as well as using its “Local Matters” campaign to highlight local organic dairy.
- The tie-up comes a few months after the grocer responded to nonprofit organization Migrant Justice’s accusations of “widespread labor abuses in its dairy supply chain.”
Dive Insight:
The partnership between the regional grocer and the organization is part of a larger effort to support organic dairy farms in the New England and New York regions after the COVID-19 pandemic, major supply contract cancelations and other economic factors put the dairy farm industry under pressure, according to the announcement.
Organic Valley, Stonyfield Organic, The Milkhouse and Butterworks are the four local dairy partners Hannaford has pledged to highlight in its stores, the press release noted.
Stonyfield Organic’s co-founder and Chief Organic Optimist Gary Hirshberg, who announced the founding of the Northeast Organic Family Farm Partnership in January 2021, stated that retail partnerships, like the one with Hannaford, are a way for shoppers to support local organic dairy.
In June, Hannaford responded to criticism from Migrant Justice, a nonprofit, farmworker-driven human rights organization that alleged labor abuses in the grocer’s dairy supply chain. The organization urged Hannaford to join its Milk with Dignity Program and, late last year, held protests outside of a Hannaford store.
In response, Hannaford said it supports the “fair, safe and humane treatment of agricultural workers” and said it does not believe the nonprofit organization’s solution is the correct approach to tackle issues facing agricultural workers.
The grocery chain said it is “fully committed to doing its part, alongside the direct suppliers, dairy cooperatives, farmers and farm workers that comprise our supply chain, to ensure the human rights integrity of our supply chain, which includes the respectful and fair treatment of farm workers within it.”
