The greatest challenge of the century is the ecological transition. But it won’t happen without a food transition. As conventional agriculture is the #1 cause of global warming and biodiversity loss. In addition to this heavy environmental cost, there are health and social consequences. Obesity is increasing. And the condition of farmers is more precarious than ever.

There are also, unexpectedly, business costs. The distribution model based on price wars, low-quality food products at low prices, is becoming increasingly unprofitable for the players who set it up. As margins are getting lower and field yields keep declining. Everybody is losing. The planet, consumers, farmers and retailers.

As the inventor of the hypermarket in France, we have historically been part of the problem. We had to accelerate the transformation of the company from a price war model to a food quality one, not only for the planet, but for our business.

We launched Act for Food, a worldwide program of brand actions for the food transition, in which every one of our campaigns is an Act for the food transition.

We started by tackling the heart of the problem: the agrochemical lobby’s attack on our food freedom. With a founding act, the Black Supermarket, we fought against an unfair law that forbade sale and cultivation of farmers’ seeds, destroying 90% of the agricultural biodiversity. It changed the law, and public opinion on Carrefour.

It deeply influenced the company, encouraged us to go further and pursue the most important transformation of our history. From then on, all of our campaigns became brand acts for food. Acts to improve consumers’ health, to make our food system better for farmers and the planet. Because it’s only through actions that we’ll eat better tomorrow, not with words.

We had to accelerate the transformation of the company from a price war model to a food quality one:

- We had to transform the culture internally,

- And transform our image in the consumer’s eye.

But it is no small feat when you’re a historic retail leader.

Carrefour suffered from the « big bad wolf syndrome”. As a retail leader, consumers frequently associated Carrefour with everything that went wrong with the hypermarket model, starting with the standardization of our food system and agriculture.

When you’re big, you’re bad, in the consumer’s mind. You’re just fighting for your revenue, at the expense of consumers.

To win back consumers, we had to reframe what it meant to be a leader. We had to spin the power of Carrefour into a positive, by putting our leadership power at the service of bettering food quality.

ActforFood is a creative platform that led a deep transformation of the company worldwide, as now, every one of our campaigns is an Act for the food transition :

National

Each country has its own acts, specific to local issues. Notable examples:

In France, an act to finance the conversion of 2,000 farmers to organic farming, an act to change the law and make video surveillance mandatory in slaughterhouses, an act to defend 100%French organicfood.

In Brazil, an act to fight against food price inflation by carving the prices in steel.

In China, an act for food safety.

International

An act to change a European law to reauthorize the cultivation of farmers’ seeds (BlackSupermarket).

Acts to finance 60,000 farmers in our quality program, remake our label with highest quality standards, deploy blockchain technology for traceability, build the largest vegan label, transform the way we negotiate shelf-space to encourage quality.

Corporate impact: Our main goal was achieved as the creative idea of Act for Food succeeded in transforming the company by putting CSR at the heart of its strategy, impacting its business strategy, products, services and operations, in 10 countries.

Impact for farmers, planet & health: We launched hundreds of Acts for Food in 10 countries. Notably contributing to change 2 laws on agricultural biodiversity (BlackSupermarket) and slaughterhouse video surveillance, fight against food price inflation in Brazil, convert 2,000 farmers to organic agriculture, finance 60,000 farmers in our quality program.

Consumer behaviour impact: Our customers’ buying behaviour started to change as sales of fruits & vegetables WW rose by 5% and organic sales by 28%.

Image Impact: +8pts brand preference.

Business impact: Carrefour’s stock value increased by 9%. As worldwide sales rose by 3.1%, worldwide online sales boomed by 30%, and we became the leader in organic food in France.