UK Co-op extends boycott of goods made in illegal Israeli settlements

The supermarket chain has taken the lead among European supermarkets to end trade with companies that purchase produce made in illegal Israeli settlements.

"Following an audit of the Group's supply chain, it will no longer do business with four companies, accounting for £350,000 worth of sales, as there is evidence that they source from the Israeli settlements in the Palestinian occupied territories," the statement said.

"The Group will also continue to actively work to increase trade links with Palestinian businesses in the occupied territories.”

The Co-op, which has not bought goods from the illegal settlements since 2009, decided to extend the boycott further by "no longer engaging with any supplier of produce known to be sourcing from the Israeli settlements".

The decision is expected to hit four Israeli companies including Agrexco, Arava Export Growers, Adafresh as well as Mehadrin which is Israel's largest agricultural export company.

Welcoming the supermarket chain’s move, Hilary Smith, Co-op member and Boycott Israel Network (BIN) agricultural trade campaign coordinator, said the Co-op "has taken the lead internationally in this historic decision to hold corporations to account for complicity in Israel's violations of Palestinian human rights. We strongly urge other retailers to take similar action."

Furthermore, a spokesperson for the Palestinian Union of Agricultural Work Committees said, trading with companies such as Mehadrin “constitutes a major form of support for Israel's apartheid regime over the Palestinian people, so we warmly welcome this principled decision by the Co-operative."