13 reasons to shop at Lidl more often
We’re fans of Lidl. Not only because they have incredibly delicious wines for next to nothing, we also couldn’t leave the mini- dishwasher, deep fryer, wine cooler and side-table cooler on the shelf. But these 13 other reasons also make us happy to fill our shopping cart at the blue-and-yellow supermarket.
The originally German supermarket chain is known for its low prices, limited range and rather uninviting stores where products are displayed in boxes. But unnoticed, Lidl is suddenly well on its way to becoming the most progressive supermarket in the country. Because…
1. Lidl combats food waste by selling products for 25 or 50 cents when they expire the following day. Last year, a trial was conducted with this approach, resulting in no less than one-third less waste. The goal is to throw away half as much by 2030.
2. Less plastic is another motto. Simply by packaging apples differently, 50,000 kilos less plastic is used each year – how much plastic soup would that be?
3. Lidl was the first to sell exclusively sustainable fish.
4. The first to stock only milk from pasture-raised cows in its refrigerators.
5. The first to remove cigarettes from its range.
6. The first supermarket free of fast-growing chickens.
7. And the only one with Kipster eggs on its shelves, the most environmentally and animal-friendly eggs in the world, laid by chickens fed exclusively on ‘residual streams’: leftover bread and grain from (Lidl) bakeries.
8. Just as pleasing: the male chicks born from the Kipster chickens are not gassed the day after hatching, but are raised and, after a happy life, processed into products such as Kipster grill sausage, earning the sausage three stars from the Dutch Society for the Protection of Animals.
9. In the process, a quarter of its sales already comes from products with a sustainability label – other supermarkets average 15 percent.
10. A trial with solar panels is underway at the Lidl in Woerden. No fewer than 1,766 panels are installed on the roof, and together they generate enough electricity to cool or keep all food products frozen, immediately making this location the first energy-neutral supermarket in the Netherlands. Who will be next, please?
11. At that same branch, you can charge your electric car for free while shopping.
12. In June, the company topped Oxfam Novib’s ranking for the first time, showing how supermarkets perform on human rights.
13. And as if all that weren’t enough, Lidl also very often comes out on top in consumer tests. Its hazelnut spread contains more hazelnuts than all other brands, and some private labels (W5 cleaning and laundry products and Kordaat beer) achieved something like leading-brand status.
All reasons why 70% of Dutch people – including those who don’t really need to watch their pennies – sometimes shop at Lidl. Even if only because this is the only place where you can buy the most sustainable egg in the world!
Read also:
- How Lidl and Aldi can remain so cheap
- Lidl sells crunchy insect snacks
- Fesjun! Lidl sells a hilarious clothing line
Source: de Volkskrant
