Championing Global Health: Walgreens Boots Alliance New Global Sustainability Report Details Support for People Living With Cancer and Efforts to Improve Child and Maternal Health

February 18, 2020 - Walgreens Boots Alliance (Nasdaq: WBA) today announced the publication of its 2019 Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Report, which details the company’s global sustainability initiatives, including efforts to improve access to quality healthcare, deliver support programs for people living with cancer and reduce its carbon footprint.

“Our purpose at WBA is to help people live healthier and happier lives,” said Ornella Barra, WBA’s co-chief operating officer and the chairman of the company’s Corporate Social Responsibility Committee. “Everyone deserves the opportunity to fulfill his or her potential, regardless of where one lives. That’s why we mobilize our incredible employees and invest resources in issues that impact our patients, customers and society. We believe in our ability to effect positive change in communities around the world.”

WBA is a leading global pharmacy retailer and wholesaler, present in 25 countries, including equity method investments. The company includes Boots UK, Boots Ireland, Alliance Healthcare and Walgreens and reaches millions of customers and patients through its retail pharmacy businesses every day.

Highlights from this year’s report include:

Expansion of In-Store Support for People Living with Cancer

For the past 20 years, Walgreens Boots Alliance and its businesses has sought to create innovative and meaningful support for cancer patients and their loved ones. 

For more than 10 years, Boots UK and Macmillan Cancer Support, one of the largest British charities, have worked together to train beauty consultants and pharmacists to deliver in-store advice to patients and customers on managing physical and emotional side effects of cancer and cancer treatments.

Following the UK in-store model, in March 2019, Walgreens launched Feel More Like You™ which also positions trained beauty consultants and pharmacists to advise and support people with cancer at more than 3,000 U.S. locations.

“The experience of cancer can be incredibly lonely,” said Jonathan, a cancer survivor. “Being able to talk with a Boots pharmacist who understood what I was going through and could give me advice on how to manage my physical and emotional side effects helped me feel less lonely and gave me the confidence to tackle my diagnosis head on.”

Life-Changing Vitamins to More Than 200 Million Women and Children

In addition to addressing cancer, WBA has also dedicated efforts to improving healthcare in communities around the world.

Six years ago, Walgreens and nonprofit Vitamin Angels teamed up to improve maternal and child health around the world. To date, the partners have provided vitamins to more than 200 million women and children around the world.

The charitable partnership works in two ways: For every customer purchase of vitamins from select suppliers, Walgreens donates one percent of sales to Vitamin Angels’ outreach efforts across the U.S. and globally. Additionally, for the past two years, Walgreens ‘Quarter Drive’ customer donation campaign in January has raised more than $3 million for the Vitamin Angels’ mission.

“You cannot underestimate the impact of Walgreens partnership with Vitamin Angels,” said Dr. Nikhil Harikrishnan, MPH, Vitamin Angels program manager in Asia. “I have seen first-hand what a small intervention like a prenatal vitamin or vitamin A can do. We are literally changing lives, and that’s why the 200 million women and children impacted by our partnership is so incredible.”

Waste Reduction and First-of-its-Kind Sustainable Shopping Experience

The new CSR report also details efforts across WBA businesses to reduce energy consumption, cut the amount of waste that goes to landfill and empower employees and customers to adopt environmentally friendly actions.

In July 2019, Boots UK launched its flagship Covent Garden store, a first-of-its-kind retail environment. The store features a water station where customers can refill their reusable water bottles and a refilling station for products such as shampoo. All Boots UK stores are also eliminating single-use plastic bags in favor of unbleached paper bags, a continuation of Boots journey to reduce plastic use across its business.

“In building the Covent Garden store, we wanted to design the Boots retail experience of the future, one built with sustainability front of mind,” said Sebastian James, managing director of Boots UK and Republic of Ireland. “As a global business, we view sustainability holistically, from our supply chain to the in-store experience we deliver for customers. It’s all connected to our desire to operate as a responsible and best-in-class company.”

The WBA 2019 CSR Report was prepared in accordance with the GRI Standards: Core option, which are the world’s most widely used set of sustainability reporting standards.

You can read more about WBA’s Corporate Social Responsibility efforts here.

Media Relations/Contact:

USA/ Pamela Morris
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Read the Report