Certifications and audits In order to ensure the highest level of product quality and safety, and to guarantee product traceability and conformity, all production facilities where our private label items are manufactured must meet the certification requirements defined by REWE. Thus, we require all our private label suppliers to have a certification recognized by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI), paying special attention to the establishments certified according to IFS (International Featured Standard) standards: • International Featured Standards (IFS) Food – Food and feed • International Featured Standards (IFS) Household and Personal Care (HPC) – Nonfood products (e.g. personal care products) • British Retail Consortium (BRC) • Food Safety System Certification Scheme (FSSC 220000) 92.89% of all private label suppliers held one of these certifications at the end of 2024, while the rest had started steps in this regard. For those suppliers who have not yet obtained one of these certifications, we carry out compliance audits aligned with the requirements of the target standard and/or REWE internal requirements. In 2024, 92 such audits were carried out to verify compliance with quality requirements on hygiene and food safety. Through these audits for private label products, we identify and prevent potential hazards related to product safety and compliance. • These audits help identify and prevent risks and are unannounced. According to our internal procedure: All new suppliers are audited before product listing; • All suppliers who deliver products that are sensitive in terms of perishability and food safety risk class (fresh meat, milk products made from fresh milk, fish) are audited annually. • Suppliers who do not prove the GFSI certifications required by our company are audited annually • In addition, all private label suppliers who have the certifications required by our company are audited at regular intervals At the supplier selection stage, we analyze the composition of the products in detail and conduct blind tastings. These comparative checks are also carried out afterwards, after the listing of the products, in order to monitor the quality and composition of similar products on the market. Benchmarks Also in 2024 we continued the comparative evaluations of national private label products, together with specialists from the REWE Group and the team from the Quality Management department, conducting benchmark tests through which we evaluated 236 national private label products compared to another similar product. Many other benchmarks were conducted internally, only by the quality team, together with colleagues from the Procurement and Marketing departments. This process supports the continuous development of our private label product assortment and involves close collaboration between the Purchasing, Marketing and Quality Management departments. For each product in question, we take into account data obtained from market studies, the composition of similar products available on the market, sensory assessments (appearance, consistency, smell and taste), as well as packaging options. Complaints and continuous improvement Customer complaints are treated with the utmost seriousness. They are analyzed as soon as possible and linked to our internal audits to determine the causes and implement corrective measures. In parallel, we continue to improve our private label products based on tastings, laboratory analyses, comparative evaluations, etc. SUSTAINABILITY STEP-BY-STEP CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND BUSINESS SUSTAINABLE ASSORTMENT ENERGY, CLIMATE AND RESOURCES EMPLOYEES AND SOCIETY INDEX GRI & SASB SUSTAINABLE ASSORTMENT
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