Aldi’s Aggressive Discounting of Fresh Milk Is Incompatible with Origin Green Membership

Unsustainable discounting of fresh milk by Aldi in the last week is socially irresponsible and fundamentally incompatible with Origin Green membership, IFA National Liquid Milk Chairman John Finn has said.

John Finn said, “Aldi is currently selling fresh milk at €1.30 for 2 litres. This is below the true cost of putting that milk on the shelf and is not economically sustainable.

“This is the second time in 12 months that Aldi has shown its aggressive discounting streak on fresh milk. In that time, the retailer has become a member of Origin Green, the Bord Bia Irish food sustainability scheme.

“In their promotional material advertising their membership of the Origin Green Scheme, Aldi claims to have developed a plan that includes sustainable sourcing and emphasises social responsibility. But any fair-minded person can see that this aggressive undermining of the value of fresh milk through hostile discounting is neither sustainable nor socially responsible.

“Aldi’s behaviour will be seen by farmers for what it is: a nakedly cynical attempt to build up market share while masking their irresponsible actions behind positive PR.

“The credibility of Origin Green depends on how much the scheme stretches its members to adopt socially responsible sourcing practices and sustainable policies and behaviours – not just environmental but also economic.

Aldi makes a lot of use of farm and farmer imagery in their promotional material and within their stores. It is clear that those messages have neither coherence nor credibility, and I believe Aldi must prove to farmers just how genuine their commitment is by living up to the spirit of the Origin Green and desisting from unsustainable discounting,” John Finn concluded.