Dutch NCP complaint against Ahold Delhaize

About the case

On 7 April, US NGO Migrant Justice filed a complaint against Dutch supermarket chain Ahold Delhaize (Ahold) to the Dutch National Contact Point (NCP) on the grounds of alleged human rights violations in the US dairy supply chain of its subsidiary Hannaford. The case references poor working and living conditions, but also accessibility and transparency issues with the NAVEX complaints hotline used by Ahold which allegedly fails to sufficiently protect workers from retaliation. NAVEX is used by many companies across multiple sectors as a grievance mechanism.

Human rights violations on US dairy farms allegedly linked to Ahold Delhaize

According to the complaint, Migrant Justice has recorded human rights violations at dairy farms which it suspects supply milk to Hannaford, since 2010. These were identified through worker interviews, farm visits, and grievance mechanisms

• Inadequate living conditions and the right to privacy – overcrowding of living spaces is common, in some cases workers were forced to alternate sleeping schedules due to a lack of available beds or to sleep in common areas.
• Unsafe working environments – 77% of workers surveyed experienced workplace injuries, likely linked to the fact that most did not receive safety training. This includes injuries from use of hazardous chemicals without personal protective equipment and injuries from malfunctioning equipment like tractors.
• Excessive working hours – according to a survey of 212 migrant workers, 95% worked 6-7 days a week and 51% worked at least 12 hours per day
• Discriminatory practices against migrant workers – 53% of workers reported discriminatory practices based on language or nationality. This includes receiving lower than minimum wage for their work.
• Indicators of forced labour present – Migrant Justice noted excessive and forced overtime, withholding of wages and intimidation and threats which are three of the ILO Indicators of Forced Labour.

Migrant Justice was not able to directly link the farms where alleged human rights violations occurred to Ahold. The NGO traced milk sold in Hannaford stores by analysing unique bottle codes, which identify processing plants operated by H.P. Hood. H.P. Hood, in turn, sources raw milk from cooperatives DFA and Agri-Mark, which act as intermediaries. While Hannaford confirms sourcing private-label milk from H.P. Hood, the blending of milk and the use of intermediaries make it difficult to directly trace specific farm-level violations back to Hannaford or its parent company, Ahold.

OECD Guidelines violations

While Ahold has a Human Rights Policy in place (its Standards of Engagement) and regularly publishes human rights reports, Migrant Justice alleges that the company violated the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises by failing to conduct adequate due diligence and disclose risks and mitigation efforts.

• Inadequate due diligence including (i) failure to identify actual and potential risks and (ii) failure to prevent and mitigate adverse impacts
• Ahold Delhaize’s internal complaints mechanism is insufficient. Workers can submit complaints directly to Hannaford or submit an anonymous complaint to Ahold’s “Speak-Up Line” either by phone or through an online platform called EthicsPoint, both managed by NAVEX. Migrant Justice helped workers submit cases to EthicsPoint in 2022 and 2023 to test the system, however most cases were closed with no concrete reply to workers and no further investigation. Response time was an average of 81 days during which time no information regarding the process and status was provided, and workers were also not provided protection from retaliation. Where there was a response that an issue was found, workers were informed that the supplier in question had been reminded of its duties under the Standards of Engagement and cases were closed unilaterally with no further availability for participation for the worker.
• Ahold Delhaize failed to identify the US as high risk in its Standards of Engagement despite evidence of the severity of adverse impacts raised by victims through its complaint mechanism. Migrant Justice notes that hundreds of victims have filed human rights violations complaints through the NAVEX internal mechanism and there is significant evidence of human rights violations in the media, indicating this is a high-risk sector. Migrant Justice also notes that current auditing processes are insufficient- Ahold uses the Farmers Assuring Responsible Management(FARM) tool, which is an industry-led program established by the National Milk Producers Federation. The program includes standards on working conditions, however it is a voluntary set of recommendations that can be tailored to each farm rather than a stringent human rights standard. The program has widespread adoption and 98% of US milk supply comes from farms enrolled on this program.
• Failure of adequate disclosure – Ahold Delhaize does not disclose adequately detailed information about its milk supply chain, specifically the farms and labour conditions involved in producing its milk products. The company also does not communicate on its due diligence processes.

The complainants are seeking 

• Ahold to join the Migrant Justice run Milk with Dignity Program, which is a social responsibility program that requires participating farms to commit to working hours, compensation and an audit process by the independent Milk and Dignity Standards Council. Migrant Justice has requested the company to join the program repeatedly since 2019, but the company has not responded to these requests. Business and Human Rights Resource Centre (BHRRC) contacted Ahold Delhaize on this matter, which responded and stated that the company’s internal mechanisms are sufficient to prevent human rights violations in the company’s supply chain. 
• Ahold Delhaize to establish comprehensive due diligence and supply chain transparency

Context and next steps

NCPs are non-judicial governmental grievance mechanisms set up in all OECD countries. They provide mediation and expert decisions on cases related to the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises (OECD Guidelines). Participation in the NCP process is voluntary. 

As a next step, the Dutch NCP will determine whether the case merits further examination.

About the parties

Ahold Delhaize is a large Dutch multinational supermarket chain that operates 7,716 stores across the US and Europe. The US is the company’s biggest market, accounting for two-thirds of net sales. Ahold Delhaize owns several US brands include the US chain Hannaford, which it bought in 2016.

Migrant Justice is a US-based farm worker campaign organisation focused on labour rights for farm workers. As of November 2024, the organisation has 2562 farm dairy worker members who receive training on advocacy.