Pressure is mounting on Woolworths as institutional investors put their support behind shareholder resolutions to stop the company’s involvement in a potential extinction event.
Woolworths continues to source salmon from Macquarie Harbour, where industrialised salmon farming is the leading contributor to the plummeting number of Maugean skate, one of Australia’s oldest creatures. Only an estimated 40-120 adult skate remain.
Over 120 Woolworths shareholders, led by activist share trading platform SIX, have joined to propose a resolution for Woolworths to remove their salmon sourcing from Macquarie Harbour.
Australia’s largest ETF manager Betashares has been joined by Future Group in pre-declaring their support for the resolutions ahead of the Woolworths AGM on 31 October. One of Australia’s leading ethical funds, Australian Ethical has also indicated their support for the resolutions.
Adding to this, one of the World’s largest proxy advisers, ISS, has advised their clients to support the resolution calling on Woolworths to report on how its salmon sourcing is impacting on threatened species like the Maugean skate. Woolworth’s latest Sustainability Report omitted any mention of the impact its salmon is having on the skate.
Reports show that ISS has captured around half of the proxy advice market, meaning their recommendation carries significant influence on Woolworth’s largest shareholders.
Adding further pressure to Woolworths is the likelihood of the Australian Government’s Threatened Species Committee upgrading the Maugean skate to critically endangered on the day prior to the Woolworths AGM.
Future Group, General Manager of Impact and Advocacy, Christina Hobbs said: “Companies that don’t identify and act on nature-related risks in their business, particularly large risks like a potential extinction, transfer those risks to their investors. In continuing to buy Macquarie Harbor farmed salmon, Woolworths is ignoring the threat it poses to the endangered Maugean skate and to their reputation.”
SIX CEO Adam Verwey said “We’ve just seen the investment community emerge from the Nature Positive Summit saying that they need to act more urgently in addressing the nature risks in their portfolio. These resolutions to Woolworths and Coles are the first test to see whether they’ll follow through on their commitments to nature. Will they allow Woolworths and Coles to cause an extinction for the sake of a very small amount of their salmon supply?”
“At its AGM this week, Woolworths directors should be embarrassed that shareholders need to intervene to stop their contribution to an extinction. This is embarrassing on a global scale, with this being the world’s first shareholder resolution to stop a company causing the extinction of a species”.
“By not taking action to save the Maugean skate, Woolworths and Coles are transferring risks on to their institutional shareholders, like super funds, who have made public commitments to protect nature. Now those super funds will face their own accusations of greenwashing if they continue to hold shares in Woolworths and Coles without being able to demonstrate that they are holding those companies to account”.
The pressure isn’t just coming from institutional investors. NGO groups have organised actions at Woolworths stores on 30 October and the next day outside the Woolworths AGM. Earlier this year a petition signed by 60,000 customers was delivered to Woolworths about ceasing their salmon supply from Macquarie Harbour.
