Relationship with suppliers

Over recent years, we have made origin an essential element of the shopping experience. In Poland, Biedronka has invested in closer relationships with small local producers. What began with a group of 60 producers in 2021 has grown steadily into a network of more than 260 by 2025. In Colombia, Ara has placed local producers at the heart of the in‑store experience with the creation of “La placita de Ara”, a space right at the entrance where fruit and vegetables take centre stage and tell stories of origin, reinforcing an identity deeply rooted in the territory. By 2025, the initiative already brought together more than 100 producers. In Portugal, Pingo Doce has been giving visibility to national production through communication that goes beyond the store environment and extends to social media, packaging and specialised fresh‑produce leaflets – affirming, with every choice, the value of local products.

On the ground, the signs of climate change have become impossible to ignore. Many suppliers are already feeling the impact of extreme temperatures and increasing water scarcity, leading them to rethink how they produce in order to ensure continuity and quality. From this adaptation, new responses have emerged: sourcing products such as bananas, cocoa or rice from other origins where the climate is more favourable; investing in more resilient varieties without giving up sustainable practices; and transforming raw materials into higher‑value, longer‑lasting products, such as preserves or dehydrated foods.

Caring for the land is also caring for the future. Sustainable agriculture helps reduce soil pollution, protects essential ecosystem services – such as pollination – and makes the entire production system more resilient, viable and socially balanced. It was with this principle in mind that the Sustainable Agriculture Manual was created, designed to support Portuguese suppliers of fruit, vegetables and flowers. The manual sets out concrete pathways to improve land use, promote biodiversity and increase water and energy efficiency. Since 2016, more than 200 farms have joined this journey, representing 67% of the volume of fruit, vegetables and flowers purchased by our Companies in Portugal.

For many small suppliers in the food sector, liquidity management is a daily challenge. With this in mind, we created invoice prepayment arrangements with financial institutions, enabling payments to be received ahead of schedule in a simple and transparent way. Suppliers can bring forward the amounts due to them, incur a cost aligned with our credit terms, and preserve their financial rating. This solution scaled up in 2025, with more than 200 suppliers in Portugal, Poland and Colombia making use of this instrument. Essentially, we are strengthening stability at the start of the value chain, ensuring store supply without compromising the financial health of producers – a partnership that builds trust and drives growth in the markets where we operate.