BILLA PLUS was this year's winner in the regional pulses category thanks to its variety in the Ja! Natürlich and BILLA Bio. BILLA PLUS also secured first place in the pork market check thanks to its high animal welfare standards. Greenpeace was also impressed by the comprehensive organic and plant-based range in the other market checks.
Marcel Haraszti, CEO of REWE International AG, is delighted: "With our purchases, we make decisions every day that affect not only our well-being, but also the climate. It is important to us to enable all customers to eat consciously and sustainably, and with the best taste. That's why we offer a wide range of future-oriented, resource-conserving food at affordable prices in all our BILLA and BILLA PLUS stores. We are very honored to receive the 'Supermarket of the Year' award. It proves that we are acting in the interests of our customers and the environment with our constant expansion of our product range in terms of animal welfare, plant-based and sustainability. We are not resting on our laurels; 2024 will also be all about greater animal welfare and climate protection in our stores."
BILLA PLUS offers the largest animal welfare and plant-based range in Austria
When it comes to animal welfare, BILLA has always been a pioneer: in 2020, BILLA was the first domestic food retailer to set a strong example and since then has only offered 100% Austrian fresh meat - guaranteeing the highest domestic standards. The BILLA animal welfare initiative goes one step further: BILLA offers customers a comprehensive range of animal welfare products, and BILLA PLUS even has the largest animal welfare range in Austria*. With the organic brand Ja! Natürlich organic brand and the "Fair zum Tier!" seal, the company is constantly striving to expand its animal welfare range. In addition, the fresh meat counters in BILLA and BILLA PLUS stores only offer fresh meat in animal welfare quality.
BILLA is constantly expanding its plant-based range in its stores in order to provide flexitarians in particular with a comprehensive offer and to inspire them to enjoy plant-based products. BILLA PLUS stores already have the largest plant-based range in Austria with around 7,000 purely plant-based products. The affordability of the products is essential in order to enable all customers to enjoy plant-based products. This is why the company has already reduced the prices of its plant-based range this year. Since then, over 50 products from the plant-based Vegavita brand have been priced at the same level or even lower than their animal-based counterparts.
Susanne Winter, Deputy Managing Director at Greenpeace in Austria, says: "In 2023, we once again carried out eight market checks. We are pleased to be able to support consumers in their daily shopping and offer them good guidance for the careful use of valuable resources. We congratulate BILLA PLUS on this year's victory and look forward to the ongoing improvements on Austria's supermarket shelves in the interests of our climate."
*Survey September 2023 GKL and Focus
