By Stephen Nakrosis

Food retailer Ahold Delhaize USA on Thursday said it was introducing new sustainability policies across its brands, which include Food Lion, Giant Food and Stop & Shop.

The company said the new policies address the issues of genetically modified food and farm animal welfare.

Under its new policies, the company said, all private brand products will be required to have clear on-pack Bioengineered Food labeling, adding this requirement comes "well ahead of the Federal Bioengineered labeling deadline of January 1, 2022."

Under its new farm animal welfare policy, the company said, it expect "suppliers of whole or single ingredient cattle products, whole pork products, whole or single ingredient poultry products and other whole or single-ingredient products derived from farm animals to have an established publicly-facing animal welfare policy." Suppliers are also expected to report annually that they "meet animal welfare acceptable levels of assurance and disclose progress through an annual animal welfare assessment and provide adequate training in their native language to all individuals involved with the direct handling of animals throughout the supply chain."

Among other measures the company is taking, it said, it had committed to reach a 100% cage-free shell egg assortment by 2025 or sooner and also said its companies sell only private brand milk products free of the artificial growth hormone rBST/rBGH. 



  --Write to Stephen Nakrosis at stephen.nakrosis@wsj.com