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Asda results - Introduction
Engagement with RTTT
After engagement in early meetings, Asda has not engaged with Race to the Top, neither participating in the development of methods, the pilot year (2002) nor full data collection in 2003. The non-engagement of this company (along with non-participation of Tesco) has had an overriding impact on the ability of the project to achieve a ‘critical mass’ of participating retailers.
Company overview
Asda was formed by a group of farmers from Yorkshire who formed Associated Dairies, which in 1965 became Asda. It is now the second largest grocery retailer in the UK based on reported turnover. At the end of 2002, it had a network of 258 stores in the UK, with a very large average store size (around 4,200 m2), employing a total of 122,000 full- and part-time staff. In June 1999, Asda was acquired by Wal-Mart—the world’s biggest retailer and biggest grocer. Asda has an Every Day Low Pricing (EDLP) pricing policy.
2003 results: overview
No data were submitted.
A store shelf survey of local and locality foods stocked by retailers was conducted by Sustain and the NFWI; results for Asda are here.
Comments from Asda
"We are sympathetic to and supportive of the overall aims of Race to the Top.
"However, following the early meetings and very careful consideration, we concluded that virtually all the elements were already covered by other surveys and studies. But in any event we decided that it would be a better use of our resources to focus on continued development of good CSR practice across the business. We are also working on our own CSR report, which we expect to make public during 2004.
"We take our wider responsibilities to society extremely seriously and CSR considerations are at the heart of everything we do."
Posted:
26-Nov-2003