The proposal was submitted ahead of the group’s Annual General Meeting on 17 May, with voting open to all Co-op members.
The motion, which called on the Co-op board to “show moral courage and leadership” by taking “all Israeli products off the shelves” and “cease all trading with Israel” as a result of its ongoing attack on Gaza, was backed by 72.80% of members that voted.
It also pointed to the fact that the Co-op was the first supermarket to boycott Russian products in March 2022, a week after the invasion of Ukraine.
The Co-op board is not obliged to implement the demands of the motion, but it said that it would take the vote into consideration while reviewing its sourcing policy towards the end of the summer.
Co-op, which has approximately 6.5 million members, operates more than 2,300 food stores as well as a wholesale business that supplies around 6,000 additional outlets.
Members also backed the appointment of Lord Simon Woolley and Wais Shaifta as non-independent directors, as well as motion focused on animal welfare.
Meanwhile, Sarah McCarthy-Fry was successfully re-elected as a member nominated director, and Mitch Oliver was appointed to the board as a new member nominated director.
The AGM was led by Co-op chair Debbie White and included presentations from CEO Shirine Khoury-Haq, CFO Rachel Izzard and president of the National Members’ Council Denise Scott-McDonald.
“In 2024, the number of active member-owners at our Co-op grew to 6.2 million, with a significant increase in member-owners engaging with our Co-op and shaping what we do,” White said.
“Today’s we’re at 6.5 million. The passion and commitment we have seen from our member-owners today is testament to our work in putting our member-owners right at the heart of the business they own. It is clear that democracy is alive and thriving within our Co-op.”
The Palestine Solidarity Campaign provided support for the motion after recently launching a campaign urging consumers, retailers and restaurants to boycott Israeli goods.
“Palestinians ask people of conscience to boycott Israeli goods and demand their removal from the shelves, as a means of isolating Israeli apartheid and supporting their struggle for freedom,” the organisation said.
It has also called for a boycott of Coca-Cola and its brands because the Israeli Coca-Cola franchise operates a regional distribution centre in an industrial park built on an illegal settlement in the occupied West Bank.
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