Close the Gap. Coop awards 5 suppliers for gender equality

0
74

The Close the Gap campaign launched by Coop to promote gender equality continues with the awarding of 5 virtuous companies. The awards were presented on 3/29/21 during an online meeting with some 600 suppliers of Coop-branded products.

Close the Gap, Coop’s new challenge

Close the Gap. We reduce the differences is yet another challenge for progress embraced by Coop. The cooperative retail brand continues to distinguish itself by pioneering courage. Impossible to list all the initiatives promoted. The ban on eggs from caged chickens since 2003, the fight against caporalato, the protection of health(meat and fish without antibiotics, first to eliminate palm oil) and the environment(stop glyphosate), animal welfare, starting with the refusal to sex chicks, etc.

The last challenge is to incentivize gender equality and inclusion, in line with goal no. 5 of the
Sustainable Development Goals
, SDGs. A concept well established in Coop, where 70 percent of the 55,000 employees, 44 percent of board members, and a large and solid share in management roles are women. But a still distant goal in Italy, where the difficulties of being a woman are summarized in our country’s ranking at 76th out of 153 countries surveyed (17th in Europe), according to the
Global Gender Index 2020
.

The 5 enterprises honored by Coop

Recognition of the qualities of the female gender, both as leadership and as a workforce and/or provision of ad hoc protections for female employees, is the added value recognized by Coop in 5 of its supplier companies.

On the podium to virtually accept these awards appeared

Nicoletta Maffini, general manager and director of sales and marketing for Conapi, a consortium of 600 beekeepers (a quarter of whom are women),

Anna Marfisi owner together with her sister of Marfisi Carni (60 min turnover and 120 employees), the third generation characterized as female,

Patrizia Poggiali to head Gala Cosmesi, supplier of Coop’s Vivi Verde green cosmetics line,

Alessandra and Laura Damiani of Orsini & Damiani, a fruit and vegetable giant. The two sisters play the crucial roles in the company. Laura is production manager, while Alessandra is sales and quality control manager, as well as a board member of the National Association the Women of Fruit and Vegetables,

Daniela Vignoni, sales and marketing manager of VMC-Vignoni, an ecofactory of socks and tights, which also produces for Coop.

Coop’s commitment against the gender gap

The recognition given to the 5 companies mentioned above is part of the path that will culminate in the awarding of the Prize, an integral part of the already existing ‘Coop for future’, after the establishment of a Scientific Committee and signaling the goals to be achieved in March 2022.

The campaign against the gender gapis one of the actions in our Agenda 2021,’ explains Marco Pedroni, president of Coop Italia. In line with its adherence to the United Nations Women’s Empowerment Principles(WEP), announced by Coop Italia’s CEO Maura Latini.

An initiative that received repeated compliments via chat during the online event. And the applause – expected – of the Minister for Equal Opportunities, Elena Bonetti, who attended the meeting together with Luigi Bobba, president
Global Inclusion Committee
.

Marta Strinati
+ posts

Professional journalist since January 1995, he has worked for newspapers (Il Messaggero, Paese Sera, La Stampa) and periodicals (NumeroUno, Il Salvagente). She is the author of journalistic surveys on food, she has published the book "Reading labels to know what we eat".