Good morning, everyone. I'm Scott Perkins, the Chair of Woolworths Group. I welcome you to the 2024 Annual General Meeting of Woolworths Group and look forward to engaging with you during the course of today's AGM. I would like to welcome Trevor Eastwood and Jason Douglas from Dalmarri to our AGM and thank them for joining us today. I'd like now to hand over to Trevor and to Jason.
Warami Mittigar means hello, good to see you, friends. My name's . I'm a proud Darug man. We've got Jason Douglas. I'm very fortunate. My father, Uncle Danny Eastwood, he's a local elder. And now normally he would do a welcome to country, but he's given me permission to welcome you onto country. Now we've walked these lands on Darug land for thousands of years. We now all walk as one. So it's a good way to come together and share this beautiful land and work together towards reconciliation. So on my father, Dan Eastwood's behalf, I'd like to welcome you all the way to the tops of the treetops. I'll welcome you down to the deep roots of the ground. I'll welcome you into all the life-giving waterways. But most importantly, I'll welcome you under the stars, which our ancestors watch over us.
So on behalf of the elders group, welcome, welcome, welcome onto Darug Country. Now you've been welcomed onto Darug Country. We become custodians. We never own the land, but it was our job to care for the land. So while we walk on Darug Country, it's important to care for country, but for care for each other while we're on this land, on this journey together. So once again, welcome onto Darug Country. I want to pay my respects to all the elders past and present. I want to pay my respects to any emerging elders that are here. But most importantly, I want to pay my respects to you guys because we've all got a shared journey and we're all in this together. And a little side note, I said we work with Dalmarri.
We've had probably about a 14-year relationship with Woolworths, and they gave us our first start from the very beginning. We started off in our garages, and now because of that start Woolworths gave us, we own a factory. We've got about six different employees, and we see firsthand, you know, the media really harp on all the negative stuff, but we see firsthand the good work that Woolworths do and the rippling effect it can have across Australia, particularly in employment and just in closing the gap. We work with the Resourcing the Future program. We're heavily involved as mentors, traveled all across Australia and seen some really good outcomes through employment. We recently started up our own art gallery and artwork, and as you walk around the building, you'll see lots of our artworks throughout the building, so I always say I'll put my hand on my heart.
A big Didjurigura in Darug Nation means thank you from the heart for all the support that you give small businesses and the opportunities that you arise. So once again, welcome onto Darug land. Thank you.
Thank you, Trevor, and also to Jason. We're very pleased to be meeting here, and thank you for joining us today. I also acknowledge the traditional owners of Darug Country and pay my respects to elders past and present and to any Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander people here or online today. Turning to today's AGM, we are pleased to offer Woolworths Group shareholders the option of participating in today's meeting in person and online. Our group company secretary has informed me that a quorum is present, so I declare the 2024 AGM open. For those in the room, I'd like to first outline the emergency procedures for this venue. Please take a moment to identify the emergency exit closest to you. In the event of an emergency, one of two alarms may sound. The alert alarm is a series of warning beeps.
If this alarm sounds, please stand by for further instructions from the wardens. If the evacuation alarm sounds, a whooping alarm, all occupants will be directed by the wardens to leave via the nearest emergency exit and quickly and calmly to make their way to the assembly area. This is located through reception leading to our on-grade car parking. Once there, please remain at this location until Woolworths Group team members advise you it is safe to return to the venue. If we are required to evacuate, please leave your voting handsets and smart card on your chair. I would now like to introduce my colleagues on the stage today. Starting on my right, our Managing Director and CEO, Amanda Bardwell, Philip Chronican, Non-Executive Director, Chair of our Risk Committee. Philip is standing for re-election at this meeting and will address the meeting later today.
Warwick Bray, Non-Executive Director and Chair of our Audit and Finance Committee. Holly Kramer, Non-Executive Director and Chair of our Sustainability Committee, and Jennifer Carr-Smith, Non-Executive Director. Starting on my left is Dom Milgate, our Group Company Secretary. Maxine Brenner, Non-Executive Director and Chair of our People Committee. Maxine is standing for re-election at this meeting. We'll address the meeting later today. Tracey Fellows, Non-Executive Director, and Kathee Tesija, Non-Executive Director. Also in attendance today is Tom Imbesi, the company's lead audit partner from Deloitte, and members of the Woolworths Group executive team. I will now talk through the procedural matters relating to this meeting. Instructions to help you navigate the online platform are available in the Notice of Meeting and in the online portal guide, both of which are available on our website.
The Notice of Meeting sets out the business of the meeting and explanatory information for each resolution, and I propose it be taken as read. If you have trouble using the online platform, please contact Lumi on the phone number shown on the screen of your webcast. If we experience a significant technical issue or if we are required to evacuate the building, I will suspend the meeting until we are able to recommence. Or if we are unable to recommence within a reasonable time, I will adjourn the meeting for another day and time. We will provide shareholders with details of any adjournment via the ASX and our website. Those of you participating online today will see a split screen with instructions on the left and the broadcast and presentation slides on the right.
You can maximize the broadcast window by clicking on the full screen icon on the top right-hand side of the window. To vote at today's meeting, you need to be registered as a shareholder. This includes body corporate representatives and attorneys or as a proxy. We will vote on each resolution by way of a poll, which will remain open until the conclusion of the final item of business. The final votes for and against each resolution will be released to the ASX after the meeting is closed. For those participating online, you can vote by clicking on the voting tab at the top of the screen, which will open a list of all resolutions and the voting options. You can vote for, against, or abstain by selecting the option for each resolution once the poll is opened.
If you have multiple holdings, you will need to log in separately with each individual holding to lodge your votes. For those in the room eligible to vote, votes will be submitted using electronic voting handsets. I'm sure everybody in the room is well accustomed to using the handsets. However, if you have any issues or you are voting and you do not yet have a handset, please raise your hand now and one of the Lumi registry assistants will help you. If you have not already done so, please insert the smart card into the top of the handset with the barcode at the bottom facing towards you. Your name should now be displayed across the top of the screen of your handset. To vote using your handset, select one to vote for, two to vote against, or three if you wish to abstain from voting on any resolution.
Confirmation that your vote has been received will appear on your handset screen. Your vote is automatically counted. You can change your vote at any time while the poll is open. If you wish to cancel your vote and have no selection recorded, press the X button. Only shareholders or proxy holders may ask a question or make a comment during today's meeting. I ask that all questions or comments are directed to me. I may also direct questions of a more detailed nature to the CEO, Amanda Bardwell, or the CFO, Stephen Harrison, or any other lucky members of the executive team. To allow us to work through the questions and give shareholders an opportunity to voice the largest range of questions, I have asked the moderator to take the following steps for the smooth functioning of the AGM.
Firstly, shareholders who have not already asked a question on the relevant item of business will be prioritized. Secondly, if we receive multiple questions via the online portal that are largely identical, one of these questions will be read and the related questions answered together. Finally, we will conduct the meeting in a responsible manner and ask that shareholders are respectful when asking questions as we will be when answering them. There are two ways to ask questions: in the room by using a microphone in the auditorium or online by submitting written and audio questions via the online platform. For those attending in person, please see the attendant at the microphone nearest to you. We have two fixed microphone stands in the middle of the auditorium for ease of access.
In the interests of giving all shareholders a fair opportunity to have their questions addressed, I ask all shareholders, please ask one question at a time. If you have additional questions, there will be an opportunity for you to ask them once other shareholders have had the opportunity to speak. If you are asking your question as a representative of an organization or group of shareholders, please include that information in your question. To submit a written question via the online portal, click the messaging tab at the top of the screen, type out your written question, and select the send icon. To submit an audio question via the online portal, select the home tab and follow the asking audio questions instructions. Enter the requested details and click submit request to join the audio questions queue.
Shareholders will be able to listen to the meeting while waiting to ask their questions. If you do have questions, I encourage you to submit them as soon as possible. A member of our internal communications team here at Woolworths will read aloud the questions in the meeting. I will deal with questions in accordance with the item of business they refer to. Every year, we receive a number of questions about individual customer service, product, or store-related matters. For those in the room, you can speak with one of our customer service team members in the foyer area after the meeting finishes. For those of you online, if you submit a question about an individual customer or administrative share registry matter, I've asked the team to inform you that the best way to get resolution of your matter is through our customer service channels or through the share registry.
Those contact details can be found in the Notice of Meeting and also on the Woolworths Group website. Now, ladies and gentlemen, and fellow shareholders, onto my address as Chair of Woolworths Group. I am honored to address you at our AGM today with this year marking the group's 100th anniversary in 35 days on the 5th of December. Having grown from humble beginnings as Woolworths S tupendous Bargain Basement to a group of iconic retail brands, we are proud today to serve across communities in Australia and New Zealand. I hope you got the opportunity to view some of the displays on the way in today and the chance to read some of the great stories over the long and proud history of our business.
For my address today, I will start with a summary of the group's performance for the 2024 financial year, including the challenging customer and macro environment. I will also cover the key areas of focus for the board in the year, including team safety, Amanda's appointment as our CEO, and updates to our sustainability ambitions. I also look forward to the opportunity to meet many of you and address questions from shareholders during the course of the meeting. Woolworths Group's performance during the 2024 financial year reflected the challenging operating environment as the cumulative impact of high inflation since 2021 drove real cost of living pressure for our customers.
While food inflation has not been out of line with other goods and services in Australia and indeed below many other OECD countries, the more regular and controllable nature of food and everyday needs purchases has placed greater pressure and increased scrutiny on those categories as customers sought to balance their budgets. Pleasingly, we saw a recovery in both customer metrics and trading performance in Q4. The positive momentum in sales has continued into the first quarter this year as our teams focused on improving in-store execution and delivering even more value for our customers. Normalized group sales for FY 2024 increased by 3.7%, with sales growth slowing in the second half of the year due to moderating inflation in our food business and weak consumer sentiment impacting discretionary spending, which was felt most acutely in Big W.
Normalized group EBIT increased by 1.1% compared to the prior year and group NPAT before significant items declined 0.6%, reflecting higher finance costs and tax expense. The group's financial performance, however, in FY 2024 fell short of our expectations. However, the fundamentals of our group remain strong. The investments we have made in building a leading digital, rewards, retail media, and e-commerce platform, the years of investment into improving the efficiency of our supply chain, the opportunities available in PFD, our now wholly owned food service business, these are all distinctive competitive strengths. These complement the backbone of our business, our store network, which delivers the convenience and the customer service experienced by more than 25 million customers each week. There are, however, some areas of underperformance, and addressing these is a matter of utmost focus for the board and Amanda.
You should expect to see even greater emphasis on in-store execution, improving availability, the positioning of our own brands, the quality of our fresh produce, alongside a concerted effort to simplify our operations. We also need to deliver on the benefits of the adjacent businesses that complement our food business. In particular, we have transformations in flight in New Zealand and Big W. The early results from New Zealand are encouraging. Progress in Big W is slower given the market dynamics and more discretionary nature of general merchandise. We are also excited about the prospects of better meeting our customers' everyday pet needs, working alongside the founders of Petstock Group, in which we acquired a 55% interest during the year.
As a result of the challenging trading conditions and our overall performance, the short-term incentive payout this year reduced to 51.3% of target or 34.2% of maximum, and the long-term incentive award had a nil vesting outcome this year, reflecting the outcomes for relative total shareholder return, return on funds employed, and reputation. These were below our expectations, but were aligned with the experience of our shareholders. I would also like to address the current regulatory environment. The dramatically changed political and economic conditions have led to increased regulatory oversight of Australian supermarkets. Woolworths Group participated in a number of government inquiries during the year, including the ongoing ACCC supermarkets inquiry and the Food and Grocery Code of Conduct review. A number of our shareholders have expressed both support for the company and their frustration at the relative merits of some of these inquiries.
Many of you here today, indeed many of our team working in our stores every day, look at some of these allegations and ask questions. Public opinion on these matters can shift quickly. Our approach is to calmly and methodically address these issues, present the evidence, and pursue all options that give us the best possible opportunity for reasoned outcomes to prevail. Woolworths Group is not perfect, and I'm sure we will learn things from some of these inquiries, but we remain firmly supportive of our teams and their conduct and the customer-first culture that so strongly underpins Woolworths Group today. Specifically, we were disappointed with the ACCC's announcement to commence proceedings, and while we disagree with their assessment that the Prices Dropped program was misleading, we are committed to working constructively with them.
I want to stress that we take our responsibility on pricing very seriously in line with our Australian Consumer Law compliance efforts. We track our price competitiveness closely, and we know that our customers do as well and have more choice than ever. If we don't offer great value alongside quality, range, and convenience, customers will choose to shop elsewhere. We are reviewing the ACCC's interim report into the grocery sector that was released last month in detail. We will provide further submissions and appear at the appropriate public hearings over the coming months. We are reminded every day that the Australian grocery sector has never been more competitive. We line up next to some of the most accomplished global and local retailers, many of whom were not present in grocery categories in 2008.
Ladies and gentlemen, we are up for that challenge, and we believe we have what it takes to compete vigorously and sustainably. However, we know that customer trust in our brand has been impacted, and we have work to do to restore this trust. Turning now to our team. At last year's AGM, I spoke about our commitment to team safety, including contractors and customers in the context of the tragic circumstances of two workplace fatalities in FY 2023. At the 2023 AGM, we received a first strike against the remuneration report. Some shareholders felt that the safety metric should have had a fatality gateway and that the reduction in FY 2023 STI outcomes did not sufficiently impact executive incentives.
For FY 2024, after consultation, the group's STI scorecard has been updated to include a fatality gateway for the safety component and to reintroduce TRIFR to complement the existing severity rate to emphasize the importance of safety in our business. We are pleased with the broad base of support we have received from shareholders in response to these changes. We also committed to consider whether any further adjustments to FY 2023 STI outcomes were appropriate once all relevant investigations were complete. The regulatory investigations are expected to be completed by the end of FY25, at which point the board will reconsider these issues. While severity rate improved in FY 2024 due to fewer severe injuries and improved reporting, our total recordable injury frequency rate deteriorated due to an increase in medical treatment and restricted work cases driven by manual handling injuries. We have comprehensively reviewed our safety strategy.
This has resulted in significant investment in safety, health, and well-being teams to strengthen our ability to drive reductions in our most frequent injury types. We expect these combined efforts to improve our work practices and will lead to safer and better outcomes. I would now like to focus on Amanda's appointment as Woolworths Group's 13th CEO. In February of this year, Brad Banducci announced his intention to retire as managing director and group CEO after 13 years with Woolworths Group and over eight years as CEO. I want to take this moment to acknowledge Brad's enormous contribution to the group. Brad has engendered a culture of putting our customers and team first, built market-leading digital, e-commerce, and analytics capabilities, which will position the group well for many years to come. Most importantly, he's built a high-caliber team.
Woolworths Group has been fortunate to have had Brad as leader, and he has indeed helped us be better together. Managing CEO succession is one of the most important tasks for a board. We refreshed our future CEO criteria in 2022 and worked closely with our team on their development. In the middle of 2023, the board commenced formal planning for CEO succession and worked with advisors to conduct an extensive search, which included international candidates alongside our internal candidates. We were thrilled to announce the appointment of Amanda Bardwell as Brad's successor. Amanda has been with Woolworths Group for 23 years and commenced as CEO a little over a month ago on the 1st of September. The board is confident Amanda is the right person to lead the group as a proven people leader, business builder, and modern retailer.
I know Amanda will live our purpose and work hard to achieve Woolworths Group's full potential. Moving now to the group's sustainability agenda. As a food retailer, we are working to promote sustainable food production in the years ahead by reducing the impact of our business on climate change and nature loss. We have evaluated the impact of various climate change scenarios on our business and the food and supply chain. It is clear that unmitigated, the effects of climate change will expose all of our stakeholders to the risks of higher prices and disrupted supply chains. As part of this year, we updated our climate and nature Scope 3 strategy, including reviewing our Scope 1 and 2 and 3 emissions reductions targets in line with validation from the Science-Based Targets Initiative, or SBTi, and its forestry, land, and agriculture guidance, all consistent with a one-and-a-half-degree pathway.
We recognize the importance of working collaboratively with our suppliers and other supply chain participants in managing the transition towards our Scope 3 ambitions and appropriate responses to SBTi’s FLAG deforestation guidance. In the year, we achieved a 42% cumulative emissions reduction from our original 2015 levels, which is on track to reach our existing 63% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2030. This was supported by an increase in green electricity usage, solar units, and the adoption of electric home delivery vehicles. While our ambition is not without challenge, as a group, we are committed to work on emissions reductions and opportunities and invest in innovative solutions. I would like to take this opportunity to address the shareholder resolutions that will be put to the meeting later today.
The resolutions relate to farmed seafood from Macquarie Harbour in Tasmania and propose the reporting of farmed seafood on threatened species and ceasing the procurement of own-brand salmon by the end of April 2025. The board does not support the proposed resolutions, and I would like to explain why. We take these issues very seriously and are actively engaging with a broad range of interest groups and stakeholders to inform our decisions and our actions. The issues surrounding salmon production in Macquarie Harbour are complex, with a range of direct and indirect environmental, industry, social, and economic factors to consider. We believe that an evidence-based approach is important in the collective efforts to secure the future of the Maugean Skate. We support the approach being led by state and federal governments on this issue.
We believe it's not only prudent but critical that we await the outcome of the federal government review and the scientific research currently underway. We understand that oxygenation and captive breeding initiatives led by the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies are showing early positive results, but we will continue to monitor the outcomes of these projects. Responsible sourcing of seafood is important to our business and underpinned by our seafood sourcing policy. Our policy requires all own-branded seafood sold in Australia to be third-party certified or independently verified as ecologically responsible. As third-party certifications develop over time, we continue to work with our suppliers to adopt higher standards. We acknowledge our shareholders' response to our disclosure on this issue. We are committed to providing appropriate, transparent reporting to our shareholders and other stakeholders and will include appropriate information in future reports.
In closing, I want to thank all of our hardworking teams for their commitment to Woolworths and serving our customers. While our operating environment remains uncertain, your board is reassured by Amanda's new leadership, her clear plans, and the underlying health of Woolworths Group. We will be relentless in providing value for our customers and supporting our team across the group. We are addressing rapid changes in trading patterns and associated margin impacts. However, we have well-developed performance improvement initiatives in flight and will increase our productivity ambition through 2025. As I mentioned at the outset, the fundamentals of our group are very strong, and we are energized by the opportunities that lie ahead of us. Woolworths Group is at the heart of nearly every community in Australia and New Zealand.
We look forward to the future with a sense of both responsibility and optimism, guided by the potential of working together for a better tomorrow. Thank you, and I now invite Amanda to address the meeting.
Thank you, Scott, and good morning, everyone. I also acknowledge the traditional owners of Darug Country and pay my respects to elders past and present and any Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people joining us today. It is a privilege to be with you all today at my first AGM as CEO of Woolworths Group in the group's centenary year. Today, I want to speak to you about this great company and, in particular, the achievements of our team and my focus areas for the year ahead. I also want to take the opportunity to recognize and thank our former CEO, Brad Banducci, who retired at the end of August. But first, as your new CEO, I'd like to introduce myself. I have spent my entire career in retail, more than 35 years, and began working in the industry when I was 14 years old.
My first job was working at a local food store in suburban Brisbane. My motivation was to save money for a car, and I realized pretty quickly how much I enjoyed retail. I joined Woolworths Group two decades ago and worked my way through supermarkets to run some of our liquor businesses, and more recently, I've led Woolies X, our digital e-commerce and loyalty business. Today, I am humbled to be leading Woolworths Group. I am passionate about retail as I was when I started, and our customers and team remain at the heart of our business. Serving our customers is our privilege and not one that I take lightly. Every day, our customers make choices. Now, more than ever, they have a wide variety of options in how, where, and when they shop.
I am acutely aware of the pressure on Australian families as a result of cost of living increases, and delivering meaningful value is our key priority. Price is important, of course, but value is more than price alone. It is about ensuring we provide consistently good shopping experiences every time our customers shop with us. This means getting the fundamentals right by providing customers with the best value, availability, range, while also enabling convenient and connected ways to shop. I also want to acknowledge the increased regulatory scrutiny in the food and grocery sector over the last year. We have openly and constructively participated in a number of inquiries and reviews, and we've appreciated the opportunity to explain how we are working to balance the needs of all of our stakeholders.
To that end, we will continue to work constructively with the ACCC and others, focusing now on our efforts to deliver for customers in F24. During the year, we took steps to address the areas that matter most to customers. These included making our price tickets and unit prices easier to read, and we continued to grow our own brand range to create affordable, quality products that provide, on average, a saving of around 30% to branded equivalents. We provided customers with a range of digital tools, including shopping lists, best unit price filters, recipes, and catalogs to help them plan and shop, and we'll continue to enhance these in the year ahead. Importantly for customers, inflation in our food businesses and Big W moderated significantly through the year as supplier cost price increases reduced, and we passed lower prices to customers. Turning now to our team.
As I mentioned, I have worked at Woolworths Group for most of my career, and I've been fortunate to be part of this incredible team in a number of different roles. A century after we opened our very first store, Woolworths Group is now one of the largest employers in Australia and New Zealand, with over 200,000 team members. I'm so proud and dedicated to our hardworking team. Keeping our customers and our team and our contractors safe is our primary responsibility. Our commitment is to ensure every team member goes home safely, so I was disappointed in our safety outcomes last year. In response, we have updated our safety strategy, enhancing our safety, health, and well-being teams, providing new training to address risks like plant and vehicle-related incidents, and strengthened the link between safety outcomes and our leaders' short-term incentive payments.
To address the impact of cost of living pressures for our team, we've made meaningful investments in our team benefits program and ensured salaries and wages kept pace with rising inflation. We've continued to focus on providing our team with meaningful careers and transforming our team proposition. Our multi-skilling program has supported our team and their earning potential through upskilling across a number of different departments to provide them with access to more shifts across the store. 2025 is the final year of our current sustainability plan. As a large business and employer, we recognize the important role that we play in driving positive change. In F24, we delivered more than 500 million in net societal benefit, including 143 million in direct contributions to the community.
We provided 36 million meals to those in need and 15 million in financial support to our food relief partners, including OzHarvest, Foodbank, FareShare in Australia, and KiwiHarvest, the Salvation Army in New Zealand. In Australia, the group's support through the Australian National Disasters Program helped local communities impacted by natural disasters, including Cyclone Jasper in Queensland, flooding in Victoria, and fires in Western Australia. We launched our much-loved Mini Woolies program in New Zealand and expanded the program to every Australian state and territory, providing hands-on learning experiences for students and job candidates with disabilities. Today, we have more than 80 sites, and 5,800 students have completed the program since it launched. Turning now to some of our key strategic initiatives in the year. Despite the challenging operating environment in F24, we continued to make progress on our everyday retail strategy.
Our food business remains the cornerstone of our group, but our growing adjacent businesses and complementary services like e-commerce and retail media, as well as investing in specialty businesses like PFD and Petstock. We aim to meet more of our customers' everyday needs and create value for the group. Digital is the virtual front door to our stores. Incredibly, since January, weekly visits to our digital platforms, including our apps and websites, have exceeded the number of transactions in our physical stores. In F24, average traffic to our group digital platform was up 20% year-on-year. Strong digital and e-commerce growth was a key highlight, with half of last year's sales growth driven by e-commerce sales, which increased by 18.5%. Convenient same-day delivery options continued to grow strongly, with 86% of e-commerce orders now fulfilled within 24 hours, supported by increased capacity and investment in our network.
Our Everyday Rewards member base grew strongly, with more than 770,000 new members joining the program during the year, and in this quarter, active members have exceeded 10 million. I'm also delighted that Everyday Rewards is officially a Trans-T asman business, meaning we're able to deliver more benefits for our Kiwi customers. Our supply chain transformation continues to progress, with several major automation projects near completion, including a customer fulfillment center in Auburn and regional and national distribution centers at Moorebank. These will materially improve the experience for our team while at the same time improving efficiency. We continue to see increasing contribution from our retail platforms and adjacencies. Our retail media business, Cartology, has grown rapidly since it was established in 2019 and is delivering EBIT growth and valuable media inventory for the group.
The group's analytics platform, WiQ, is also delivering material benefits across the group through its high-value use cases and tools, which are providing actionable data-led insights to drive operational efficiencies and productivity. Finally, in January this year, we completed the acquisition of the Petstock Group, helping our customers meet more of their everyday needs as part of our connected group. Yesterday, we released our sales results from the first quarter of F25. We worked hard to deliver much-needed value to our customers in the quarter. We offered our customers more value, increased shelf capacity to improve the availability of our own brands, and made it easier for our customers to find the best unit prices. We also provided extra value through Everyday Rewards and brought a little bit of joy to families through our first group-wide collectible campaign, Disney Worlds of Wonder.
Group sales increased by 4.5%, with solid item growth in our food businesses, along with ongoing strength in e-commerce. Australian food total sales increased by 3.8% due to strong focus on value in the quarter, improved availability, Disney collectibles, and e-commerce sales growth of 23.6%. Australian B2B sales increased by 6.9%, with PFD sales growth remaining strong at 8%. In New Zealand food, customer scores improved further in the quarter, particularly in the key focus areas of Value for Money and Fresh. Total sales increased by 2.7% due to item growth and strong e-commerce sales, with momentum increasing as the quarter progressed. Petstock sales increased by 17%, reflecting the acquisition of the Petstock Group in January 2024. Big W sales were down 0.9% in the quarter, with strong item growth being offset by lower average selling prices as we increased the range of our opening price points.
Lowered prices and customers traded down to more affordable options. We also provided an update on our earnings outlook for Australian food business for the first half of F25, which is forecast to be below previous expectations. As we focused on delivering more value to our customers during the quarter and building sales momentum, promotional activity in Australian food increased as customers responded strongly to specials and, in particular, larger savings. While this has contributed to improved sales momentum, it has also led to a lower margin sales mix. Additionally, e-commerce growth has remained stronger than anticipated in the quarter, which has also impacted margins. While responding to customers' needs and maintaining our trading momentum remains our priority, we are taking steps to improve our financial performance. We are optimizing our commercial program to offer compelling value to customers while improving promotional effectiveness, as well as uplifting our productivity agenda.
In closing, I wanted to finish my address as I began, with customers top of mind. As we look ahead, our priorities are extremely clear. We know we need to get it right for customers, rebuild trust, and continue to put them first so that they continue to choose us. We need to continue building on the great strengths we have and remain focused on executing our trade plans. This means getting the basics right every day on value, availability, range, service, and convenience. As we begin the run into Christmas, there is no better time to be in retail, and I'm energized by the plans that we have in place to help our customers through the Christmas and holiday season.
Looking ahead, we are focused on unlocking the potential of the group, leveraging technology and AI to transform how we work and how our customers and members shop our brands, and we continue to look for ways to make it easier for our team to have an impact and to care for our customers. The operating environment remains challenging, but I'm confident that we have all the right building blocks in place. We understand the need to prioritize the areas that can deliver the most impact and simplify the way that we work to deliver strong, long-term, sustainable value for our shareholders. I want to take this opportunity to thank our team for their incredible efforts during the year. I would also like to thank our customers for choosing Woolworths and giving us the privilege of serving them every day.
Finally, I would like to thank you, our shareholders, for your continued support as we celebrate our centenary and look ahead to the future. I will now hand back to Scott. Thank you.
Thank you, Amanda. We will now turn to the more formal items of business for this meeting. But before I do so, I would like to acknowledge the presence in the room of a very distinguished and esteemed former Woolworths team member. And I pay no disrespect by calling Paul Simons, the CEO from 1974 to 1980, the Chair from 1987 to 1995, a proud Woolworths team member. Paul, I would just like to acknowledge your presence in the room and thank you for your incredible service and continued interest and dedication to what we do here in the company. Thank you, Paul. A living example of the longevity benefits of the fresh food people.
I think so. Absolutely. Fantastic. The items of business for today's AGM are set out in the notice of meeting and will be voted on by a poll which is now open. As set out in the notice of meeting, I intend to vote all open proxies in favor of each of the resolutions two, three, and four, and against resolutions five, six A, six B, and six C. I remind shareholders that only resolutions two, three, and four to be voted on at today's meeting are supported by your board. Our share registry, Link Market Services, will act as returning officer for the poll. The first item of business is to receive the financial report and the report of the directors and of the external auditor for the year ended 30 June 2024. There is no vote on this item.
A copy of these statements and reports was published in the 2024 annual report and sent to those shareholders who requested copies. Shareholders have also had the opportunity to view the statements and reports, as well as the 2024 sustainability report, on our website. I now invite comments or questions on the financial statements and reports. All questions to the auditor should, in the first instance, be addressed to me as Chair, and if appropriate, I will ask Tom Imbesi to address the meeting. I will firstly deal with questions from the floor and then questions submitted online during the meeting. Are there any questions in the room?
Chair, I have a question from Natasha Lee.
Natasha, good to see you again.
Good to see you. I know you've been waiting for my question. I'd like to firstly thank the board and the team for their efforts. I know that it's been a tough year as far as the trading environment. I suppose the first comment is the online layout of your annual report being double-paged, which for people like me trying to read it online is very annoying. So I'm not sure whether you could have either put it all single-page so you can just read down or make two versions for those who've got giant screens to read everything at once. But it just saves me having to page across and then back and up and down, and especially as my eyesight's getting worse with age.
Thank you, Natasha. We'll take that request and go away and consider it because we probably have a competition between the two of us who's got the worst eyesight. But yes, it's difficult. Thank you.
It's nice to have people with bad eyesight looking at these things because they can see the problems.
Yes. Understand.
The first question concerns there's been a bit of an uptake in borrowings, which is partly expected because of your expansion and things like that, but also the increase in the interest payments whilst we're expecting interest rates to come down a bit in the future. So can you just talk about what are your plans and strategies for managing the level of borrowings? Are you comfortable with the current level you're planning to pay down? I suppose tied up with that is there was an increase in derivatives, which was supposed to be hedging against interest rates as well as Forex transactions. And I'm not sure to what degree, since a lot of the borrowing seems to be on a floating exchange rate, what is the overall plan and strategy as far as managing those interest rate costs?
Yes. So let me address the couple of different aspects in there. I think in an overarching sense, the balance sheet of Woolworths is strong, and we intend to keep it that way. When we're considering capital structure, we're always thinking about the level of free cash flow that comes out of the business, our reinvestment opportunities, which in recent years have been quite significant as we've been investing into supply chain and making some carefully judged, but we think quite strategic acquisitions to build out our adjacency businesses, and of course, maintaining an attractive dividend for shareholders. This year, we're obviously pleased to include the AUD 0.40 special dividend as part of our distributions to shareholders. So when we look at balancing all of those factors, we think our capital structure is about right and the level of borrowings we're very comfortable with.
It gives us room to maneuver, but we're also mindful of maintaining the optimal capital structure and not having too much financial slack in the organization. But at this point in time, we're very comfortable with our capital structure. You're right. The year in variations of interest payments and the derivatives just reflected ordinary course of business, hedging activities on some borrowings that we undertook, and just that slight movement in interest rates, but nothing untoward there.
Okay. Thanks. Can I answer? I've got a number of questions, but I'll ask another quick question if you don't mind.
We did ask you to ask one.
That's okay.
Why don't you come back? And thank you, Natasha. Thank you.
Chair, I'd like to introduce Nathaniel Pelle on behalf of Andrew Reimer.
Thanks.
Welcome.
Thanks, Chair. So a great deal more attention has been paid to nature-related risks in this year's annual report compared to last year, which is good to see. And I guess I'm interested in how far progressed Woolworths is in managing those risks, noting that TNFD and reporting on TNFD is an ambition. And the first step in TNFD is to locate potential impacts and dependencies on nature. And the skate, which is coming up later, is a good example. Had Woolworths noted that there was a risk in Macquarie Harbour earlier, it might have anticipated how to manage those risks. So I guess the question is, to what extent has Woolworths located other potential risks from nature or to nature through its value chain, through geolocation? I appreciate it's a challenge, and you're probably only partially there, but I guess how progressed are you on that?
Do you, for example, know how much, I don't know, sugar you get from the Great Barrier Reef catchment area or beef?
Chair, I think that's a terrific question. Thank you for that question. As you rightly point out, both from a financial reporting perspective and through our own internal focus and energies, we are embarking on a new chapter of elevated awareness as to the nature-based risks in our business, and if you look at our sustainability report, we called out the six areas of real sustainability impact we thought we could have going forward, and our contribution to nature-based solutions was one of those six priority areas, so it's certainly being recognized as such. Yes, we have started that process. I think it's still reasonably early days, but quite a lot of work has been done on infrastructure resilience and determining the impacts of climate on key food commodity groups as well as our physical infrastructure.
Yes, we are starting to identify those food groups that might be more dislocated by more extreme climate scenarios. We, of course, model a number of those scenarios through our supply chain to determine those impacts. I think what you'll see going forward, and by the way, I'll reserve a full answer to the issues of Macquarie Harbour when I think one of the members of Six we're going to invite to address the meeting. I'll reserve my answer to that point in time. We do expect that we will discover more of these issues going forward. I think it's absolutely inevitable. Of course, the big change this year was our decision to continue to be validated by SBTi in terms of our Scope 3 emissions.
That decision really drew us into being covered by their FLAG guidance because we, as an organization, are impacted by forest land and agriculture risks. Our Scope 3 emissions are now assessed under FLAG and a non-FLAG basis, which has given us the opportunity to recast our Scope 3 aspirations in those two areas: 40% by 2033, 72% by 2050, and 55% for non-FLAG, leading to 90% again in 2033, 90% by 2050. That is opening up, I think, a broad range of opportunities for discussions with our suppliers and our key commodity groups, which, as you probably have read no doubt in our sustainability reporting, includes pulp, paper, and packaging, palm oil, cocoa, soybean for stock feed, and critically fresh beef.
That process of engaging with our supply chain partners, with the industry in general, is very much a shared endeavor because all of our major suppliers and the peak bodies in agriculture in Australia have net zero ambitions as well. So I think hopefully it's given you a reasonably full answer to how we're thinking about it, looking to quantify it, our commitments to reporting on it, and I think governed by FLAG guidance, you'll continue to see elevated information as a shareholder.
Yeah, I guess I don't know how far progressed you are in anticipating the next Scope risk. And I'm not here about the Scope, I guess. I'm here broadly about that nature risk process. So maybe you don't know how far along you are in terms of locating your interfaces with nature, but that's what I'm after, I guess, with the question.
And I think you'll hear more from us in the future. I think I've given you a sense for the work that's being undertaken and the preparation for that. But we're certainly not aware of any other species in an endangered classification that is proximate to our operations. But I'm sure we'll continue to learn more about that, as indeed will all of Australian business and society.
Good. Thanks.
Thank you for your question.
Chair, I have a question from a proxy for shareholder Sarah Walsh.
Good morning, Chair. In 2024, as you mentioned, Woolworths announced a new target to eliminate deforestation from its supply chains. And in its 2024 annual report, Woolworths states that the targets are based on information from and commitments by its suppliers. Has Woolworths sought a commitment from its suppliers to provide data in relation to the production and supply of its products in accordance with the Science-Based Targets Initiative, Forest, Land, and Agriculture guidance that you mentioned, and the definitions in that guidance? Thank you.
Thank you, shareholder, for the question. It's a very topical one, and thank you for taking the time to read our disclosures in our sustainability report. In order to meet our Scope 3 targets, and I'll come back to FLAG in a minute, we absolutely will rely on working very closely with our suppliers because our Scope 3s are pretty much their Scope 1 and 2s. And when we look through all our suppliers, and we've done all that analysis, the majority of them have actually quite well-developed plans. So yes, we will be working very closely with our suppliers in order to meet our Scope 3 targets. In respect to FLAG, FLAG guidance being, just to remind all shareholders, our Scope 3 emissions, which are those emissions that are not in our operational control. Scope 1 and 2 are in our operational control.
Scope 3 are our supply chain, downstream and upstream. We're required to report on those, and we've chosen to report under SBTi. SBTi requires us to bifurcate those into FLAG and non-FLAG. FLAG are the five commodity groups that I referred to, and no deforestation applies to all of them. And at the moment, by the way, all our own brands are certified in respect of soy and palm oil as no deforestation. The big challenge, of course, is fresh beef. And I think we will be working closely with industry bodies over the next 12 months before the December deadline to develop a workable and just definition of no deforestation because at a high level, not destroying native forest or natural forest makes sense to everybody. How that is implemented and the nuances of that definition is something that we are working on. Thank you, shareholder.
Thank you. Just on your last point here, there is actually a definition of deforestation in the FLAG guidance. So we're interested to see whether Woolworths will stick to that definition in order to stick to its SBTi targets.
We are aware of that definition, and that's a good starting point to engage with the domestic industry on. So thank you for your question.
Chair, I have a question from Bonnie Graham.
Good morning.
Good morning.
It was great to see Woolworths elevating deforestation risk in your most recent report, and specifically the updated target around deforestation-free beef, which is fantastic. But there are a huge range of other nature-related issues that are relevant to Woolworths agricultural supply chains, including things like water use and chemical pollution and soil degradation, just to name a few. So I'm really interested to know what other nature-related issues Woolworths has begun to quantify in terms of risks, impacts, opportunities, and dependencies, and also what specific value chains or commodities the company has identified as most material regarding nature moving forwards.
Yes. Thank you for the question, shareholder. I do believe I've substantially answered that question with the prior question that was asked, but I'll repeat the high points just as a matter of due courtesy and respect. So we absolutely are working very hard in this new era, bearing in mind that we are at the starting point of needing to disclose more on our nature-related risks of identifying these various risks in our supply chain. And that work has started. I also, I think, mentioned what our five key high-risk commodities were, and they pertain to pulp, paper, and packaging, to cocoa, to palm oil, to soy and stock feed, and fresh beef.
I understand that they're for deforestation, but for nature risks more broadly outside of deforestation?
Yes. Again, early days on identifying those risks, and I think you'll hear more from us going forward in our sustainability report.
Great. I look forward to it. Thank you.
Thank you for your question.
Chair, I have a question from Robert Caterson.
It's good to be back at a Woolworths shareholders' meeting and congratulate you on your appointment and your appointment of Amanda.
Thank you.
The first point I want to make is we still haven't seen any radical reduction in the use of plastic packaging. That's one point. The second point is I've been to my local supermarket, and Amanda made the point of about unit pricing and price ticketing and that. I, too, like our colleague here, have a bit of a sight impairment, and I can't read them properly compared to the other ones. They're too dark. They're very bad in contrast, and the next point I want to make, and maybe Amanda or yourself can enlighten us, because we've had so much inflation, why is the cost of a lot of things supplied to us by major suppliers gone up by probably 100% or 200% recently compared to the inflation rate? And what is our buying practices, and what is the influence we have on our suppliers?
Or is there some sort of, maybe you don't know, is there any sort of collusion we have with suppliers and our competitors in buying product that we put on our shelves?
Let me take the last point first. There's absolutely no collusion whatsoever. But you raised three very good points there. So I'm clearly not being very effective with my one question rule in this AGM so far, but let me answer all three of your questions. The first question is in respect to plastic. We actually are making very good progress on plastic, but it's a huge task. Two and a half thousand tons of plastic were removed last year from all of our supermarkets. We have stood up from scratch, working with other industry partners and industry trying to recycle flexible plastic after the collapse of REDc ycle. We've moved all of that plastic that was not adequately stored into new premises. We've started trial plants in Taree, but it's a global challenge how to do this.
But you're absolutely right to continue to hold us to account because in terms of sustainability, this is one of the areas where our customers expect us to do more, and I think we can do more.
Because we've got to get rid of it.
We've got to get rid of it. Absolutely.
Fresh fruit and veggie aisle, right? There's a lot of stuff in plastic which could be loose anyway and could be sort of sold at a more realistic price overall.
What I'm.
What people need, not sort of a 10-kilo bag of potatoes in a plastic bag.
Yes. What I'm particularly pleased with is the progress that our own brand business has made on packaging, which, if I'm and Guy Brent will either nod in agreement or otherwise, is, I think, approximately 85%. We've removed 85% of plastic out of non-recyclable material out of all of our own brand goods.
Another thing is your Macro brand of meats are in paper, right? But all the rest of them are in plastic.
Yes.
Or why can't that be sort of translated along to the whole range of meat?
So, shareholder, you're absolutely right. I think we are making good progress, but there's more to do, and our shareholders and our customers want us to do more, and I think you'll continue to see us do more. But I do want to acknowledge the efforts that have been made to date, and that two and a half thousand tons last year was no mean feat. In terms of the ESLs, the electronic shelf labels, let us take that on notice.
It's not those ones. It's the other ones that you've replaced.
Right.
Very gray looking, and from my point of view, I can't see them properly.
Okay. Let me take that on notice, and we'll consider that, and Amanda will connect with Rob afterwards.
Paper special label was far more readable.
Right. And then the final question you asked, and this is a very important question, is the issue of inflation. During the COVID period and into the Ukraine war, food price inflation globally soared, and you're absolutely right. The source of inflation, and indeed excluding our own brands, which of course we are subject to the same inputs, all 260 instances of the P rices Dropped allegations made to us by the ACCC were for price increases initiated by suppliers. Now, we validated those. We tested and we probed because we just don't accept price increases willy-nilly. We have our Grocery Code of Conduct obligations, but we also have to diligence those to ensure that they were actually fact-based, and we believe they were, so food price inflation was a global phenomenon.
As it turns out, Australia was in actually a much better place than most of the OECD in terms of the amount of food price inflation that ultimately got transmitted to shelf prices. But that's cold comfort. We're all been grappling with the issue of food price inflation. So your observation around input cost is absolutely right.
Yeah. Well.
What is good news, shareholder, is that food price inflation has declined outside of normal produce cycles to almost zero.
But you know.
It's come all the way back down.
You've seen in the media, right? It's a bit laughable, but you could fly over to England and go to Sainsbury's or Tesco's and buy your Tim Tams or Vegemite far cheaper than you can buy them in Woolworths or in Coles, and I looked at a packet of Tim Tams, and I thought, well, the last time I bought one, they had 12 in them. Now they've only got nine in them. Now, do we have any influence over that?
No, we do not.
The shrinking of the packaging sizes?
Oh, well, we work with our suppliers on all sorts of packaging formulations the whole time, but we don't control the price of Tim Tams.
No, no. Even the packaging of these items, because it really sort of at a customer level, you get that dissatisfaction when you've bought something for 200, and now 200 g, and now it's 170 g.
Yes. We also have, and I'll draw this, this will be the last question, shareholder, if you wouldn't mind, just to give everybody else a go. We also get lots of feedback from customers saying, "Thank you for unit pricing." I'm sorry, you can't quite read the labels, but unit pricing to enable our customers to make a unit price-based decision, but also more affordable pack sizes to assist them with their budgeting. So we understand that provided we are transparent, customers can make their own minds up and actually adjust their budget spend on unit price and units themselves as they see fit. Thank you for your questions, shareholder. We appreciate it.
Chair, a question from Stephen Wee on behalf of Damien Wee.
Good morning. I'm making a comment and a question. This morning, not only have you given us a welcome to country, as most companies do, but you have also allowed us to see and to hear for ourselves the things you have done to improve the well-being or the economic well-being of the first inhabitants of this land. And as a Woolworths shareholder, I'm very proud that in any country, you can't have social harmony unless you have a wide economic imbalance. So I'm glad of that. The question I have is regarding the annual report. Among the four business segments, you've got Australian food, where you have return on funds employed of about 32%. For New Zealand food, which is very similar, but a different country, it's only 3%. So I was wondering why is the difference in the return on funds employed?
Is it because you're squeezing the Australian consumer or the Australian supplier?
Thank you for your question, shareholder, and thank you for kindly acknowledging our continuing efforts in respect of reconciliation. There are a number of different inputs that go into, obviously, return on funds employed. If you look at Australian returns, our return on funds employed is higher than in New Zealand, simply because at the moment, our New Zealand business is in the middle of a transformation and not nearly performing to its full potential. While Amanda and I have shared, I think, in the encouraging signs of some momentum in that turnaround, it's still early days. We certainly hope to improve the performance of our New Zealand business and improve return on funds employed. Overall, group return on funds employed, if you aggregate all of the businesses up, it's about 15% pre-tax, 10% after-tax.
We sometimes get queries about our degrees of profitability, which in our view are not out of line with other benchmarks. When you think about it, for every dollar of sales that Woolies has, once we pay our suppliers, pay our teams, invest in our supply chain, pay tax, payroll tax, income tax, invest for the future, we have about 2.5% left to pay you a dividend out of. We don't believe that overall levels of return at Woolies are excessively high. Of course, we live in an extremely competitive market. Having said that, we do want to invest to improve returns over time. That's what our business is about. We are investing into the future in terms of not only supply chain, but a very exciting pipeline of technology and related improvements to the customer experience and to the team experience.
So we're trying to get that balance right: high price competitiveness for our customers, paying our teams fairly, investing in the future, and in a very competitive environment, generating competitively attractive returns for you as a shareholder. Thank you.
Chair, I have a question from Tony Lonergan on behalf of shareholder Amanda Shu.
Thanks for the opportunity to ask a question. I come from Mudgee. I've been on the family farm there since 1981. We're a mixed farm, but the last 30 years, we've mainly been producing beef, and in that time, I've changed my own farming practices. I've been aware of the environmental impact of the farm, and I've been moving towards more sustainable practices, and that's not necessarily the most financial reward, depending on the circumstances, so when you say you're working with industry groups, in a lot of ways, you're dealing with the status quo. There's been a growing movement towards regenerative farming and sustainable farming practices in general. So do you have any plans to incentivize products from regenerative farms and, as I say, more sustainable agriculture?
I know that's not easy, but there are organizations that represent regenerative farmers where the emphasis is on environmental sustainability rather than actually producing. A friend of mine says he doesn't produce cattle; he produces pasture, and that prioritizes looking after the soil. So if you're going to be addressing climate, addressing sustainability, addressing biodiversity, then you need to be working with those groups as well as the status quo beef producers.
Shareholder, thank you for the question. I think it's a terrific question, and congratulations on your foresight. In our sustainability report, we actually call out regenerative agriculture as we think a significant area of opportunity. And yes, we have done quite a lot of research into what that might mean for the business. It's obviously the trade-off is always how can we land it in the right kind of value outcomes for our customers. But we believe that there will be quite some interest from our customers and our suppliers to learn more about this because, as you're living this, but the research that we get as a board, and this comes up through our sustainability committee, is that the returns potentially to farmers from regenerative practices, the reduction of fertilizer, carbon sequestration, improvement in quality outcomes may well make it economically sensible over the longer run as well.
So we'd like to learn more, and we'd like to be doing more.
There's no financial reward at the moment, and there's no customers would be keen to know our information, how produce is produced, and that's not happening at the moment.
We should certainly introduce you to our Greenstock people. I don't know if Anna's in the audience at all, but Guy, maybe good Guy, if you put your hand up, Guy, we'll have a chat to you after the meeting. But keep up the good work, and we'd love to learn more.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Chair, I'd like to introduce Jonathan Moylan with a question on behalf of Adam Pearson.
Thank you.
Thank you, Chair. You'll be happy to hear I have one question. Congratulations again on your zero deforestation commitment this year. It's great to see some distance between Woolworths and Coles. I'm sure you're happy about that as well. Obviously, beef supply chains are complex. There are a number of actors along the supply chains from the producer to the feedlot to the abattoir to the processor to the supermarket and finally to the customer. So I was wondering, not expecting a precise answer, but how much farm-to-fork traceability you have as a proportion of the fresh beef in particular that you sell. And by when do you hope to achieve full farm-to-fork traceability so that you can assure yourself that you're meeting your zero deforestation target?
So I don't have all the stats on this, and I'm not sure. I don't know, Amanda, whether you do either. It's probably a question of a detail that I would love to follow up with you on. What I can say is that through Greenstock, which is an end-to-end supply chain operation we have from animal selection through our JV with Hilton right onto high-quality product in our supermarkets, that gives us a unique seat at the table to deliver on end-to-end supply chain visibility. That's the first thing. The second point I would make is I think inevitably, as fresh food continues to evolve and our commitment to leading in fresh food evolves, it leads us further down the issue of supply chain traceability, not only from a provenance perspective, but also from a supply chain integrity perspective. Keeping things in temperature control, for example, minimizing vibrations.
I understood recently that packets of chips can explode in trucks if the trucks get too high. So there are sensors out there that can measure altitude. There are all sorts of new innovations that I think are going to give us more insight into our supply chains and give customers more choice.
Thank you, Chair.
Thank you.
Chair, I introduce a proxy for shareholder Claire Hodgson.
Good morning, Chair, and thanks for the opportunity to ask the question. I'd also like to acknowledge your new zero deforestation target in the sustainability report and congratulate you on it being validated by the Science-Based Targets Initiative. As you said before, the SBTi
mandates no deforestation targets for companies in food, land, and agricultural sectors, but it also recommends no conversion targets, so for companies to set a target to eliminate the conversion of natural ecosystems from its supply chains by 2025. Has Woolworths considered the establishment of such a target? And if not, has it assessed whether the absence of a no conversion target is compatible with your climate plans and carbon reduction targets?
Thank you, shareholder, for the question. I think, as I mentioned earlier, the no deforestation commitment, the definition of which we are working with industry on to ensure that it is fit for purpose from the Australian context, when we hope to get that done, we would need to get that done by December next year. This is going to raise all the issues you talk about. Yes, we're aware of the definitions, no destruction of recovering forestry as well, and the broader nature considerations that other shareholders have talked about. All things are being considered at this point in time as we work cooperatively with our supply partners and industry peak bodies to land at the right nuanced definition with all the detail you talk to of no net deforestation. Thank you for your question.
Thank you. I'll just reiterate that the SBTi actually recommends a no conversion target. So that's more than deforestation. And we've seen Aldi commit to this as well. So it would be great to see Woolworths make that pledge as well.
Thank you very much. Thank you.
Chair, I have a question from Julieanne Mills from the Australian Shareholders' Association.
Hello, Julieanne.
Hello. Thank you for taking my question. I'm a bit short today. Firstly, I'd like to thank the board and the previous CEO for his time at Woolworths and congratulate Amanda Bardwell for her position. And just to say that it really does reflect what a great job he has done being able to bring someone from inside the company up to this level. The question we have today is actually about your role. In 2023, you have three—sorry, I'll start again. You have two chair roles on two ASX-listed companies and a role as a director on Brambles, so Origin, Woolworths, and Brambles. The ASA sees a chair role as two roles. And although you're well within our six-role limit, we just wonder whether you considered having a vice president or a vice chair in that role as a backup.
Because although we realize that you can probably manage this, we would like to. It's probably not optimal to scenario. Sorry.
Thank you for your question. Just to clarify that I retired from the Brambles board a couple of weeks ago at their AGM. And as you, I think, appropriately note, the ASA's guidelines, as indeed most proxy firms' guidelines, mean that I'm well within the definitions of, if you like, the definitions of workload. That's not really the point, though. To be honest, the point is that have I got the time, resources, passion, and energy to commit myself to the Woolworths task? That is a question that we all ask ourselves as directors. It's a question that we all participate in third-party reviews and feedback every year. So this board, each of the directors up here are assessed in terms of their capacity and their performance. It's a very rigorous assessment, as I say, conducted by a third party.
I'm pleased to say that my colleagues wish to continue with me in the job. I believe I've got both the time and the passion and the commitment to Woolworths to fulfill my duties.
Thank you, Chair.
Thank you for your question. Thank you.
Chair, I'm reintroducing Natasha Walsh. She has a follow-up question.
Natasha.
Yeah, Natasha Lee. Just a bit of a clarification. I notice that there's been an increase in provision for self-insurance. And I do understand self-insurance. I was involved with the New South Wales Treasury Managed Fund previously. But just the clarification of what particular aspects of the businesses are covered by self-insurance. And I suppose if there's large things like buildings to a degree, which you're covered by reinsurance products.
So the drivers of self-insurance, of course, are expected claims outcomes and how the business is traveling. I think the provisions you might be talking about might also include some public liability and workers' compensation provisions as well. And as you know full well, those are driven by claims outcomes, expenses, and what's going on, the underlying trends in the business. There's nothing extraordinary in those numbers. There's no radical departure from prior experience and no change to our accounting policies in that regard, Natasha. So there's really nothing of any materiality to report there.
Yeah. So the self-insurance, just to clarify, is more about those liabilities and physical assets?
Yes.
Okay. Yeah. It just wasn't quite clear in the report. Thank you.
Thank you. If there are no more questions in the room, I'll turn to online questions.
Thank you, Chair.
Oh, sorry.
Sorry. I'll stick to your one-question rule, but since there's no one else, I just wanted to make a comment about your online platform. Whilst it's very good and it does have the function which shows the availability of stocks in nearby stores, one thing as a customer, which I do find annoying, is that there are times when there's price divergence between what's advertised online and when you turn up at the store. There is a difference. I think whilst it might not seem important, I think that it is an important issue for customer satisfaction as well as not wanting to get offside with the ACCC about being charged a different price from what was advertised.
Amanda will add if I don't answer this comprehensively. That actually shouldn't be the case, Natasha, unless it's a metro store, which just by virtue of their convenience, locations, and smaller footprint may have somewhat fewer promotions. But it should be the same pricing. So if you're detecting any of that, Amanda, is there anything else you would like to add?
Because I live in a city, the normal supermarket, they've all been converted to metros.
Oh, right. Yes. I think what we should take the opportunity to do is just also look at the settings on the app or on the website to make sure that you've attached the store you're intending to shop at. And that should be then showing through in sort of five-minute updates, actually, in terms of inventory availability alongside price, the right information for you. So again, let's connect after the AGM's finished, and we'll just help you on that one. Thank you. Thank you for your feedback. Thanks, Natasha.
Thank you, Chair. This question is from Peter Calirero. With customers feeling cost of living rises and trading down, why is Big W struggling? Our competitor in the same market segment, Kmart, is going gangbusters in this market segment. What are they doing right that we are at Big W doing wrong?
Look, I think there are a number of reasons that are explaining Big W's performance. I want to stress that actually we've got confidence in Big W, confidence in the plans. The current trading environment is obviously very, very challenging in respect of discretionary items. Of course, we look around us, not just in Australia, but globally, to see what we can learn in terms of best practice from every participant in both physical retail and general merchandise and online in general merchandise.
So whether it being, I think, the significant reset in format and the pricing architecture, the way we've reset apparel for summer, the way in which our everyday needs offering in Big W has really come to light, some of the early signs and really quite positive signs coming out of health and beauty with stores within stores with new brands, I think there is cause for, I think, some optimism on Big W. But we are not expecting this to happen in the near term. And yes, we look at all of the domestic competitors, and we'll be not only extremely price competitive, but I'm sure we'll be able to learn from them and others.
Chair, I have three questions from Ronald Guy from the Regional Trade Union Human Rights Shareholder Group. The first question is, Pacific and international workers have been exploited in the agricultural industry. How has Woolworths ensured that this is not the case in the supply chain of Woolworths? Has there been any examples this year of Woolworths needing to approach suppliers this year with such concerns?
I think this is a very fair question. Shareholders, as was set out in our modern slavery report, the modern slavery risks we do think are in some aspects of agricultural supply chains. And that's the reason why we have got a very strong program of due diligence and compliance monitoring through all of our produce suppliers, in particular those ones that rely on migrant workers. And specifically to answer the shareholder's question, we did discover in some suppliers some failures to adhere with our standards and oversaw and worked with those suppliers to remediate those to the tune of around AUD 300,000 in our agricultural supply chain in the last year. So it's an area of constant vigilance for us.
Chair, this is a second question from Ronald Guy. There have been concerns raised this year of stress caused by constant monitoring of warehouse employee activities. In the interest of equal treatment of employees, will the board commit to the same monitoring process so that shareholders can observe board members utilizing 100% of their time efficiently? This could be especially valuable where board members are representing more than one company.
Okay. Look, let me just allay any concerns. We are not monitoring our workers. There's some quite wild allegations that have been made that we're not tracking people after hours or tracking them. It is important for us, in the context of a business that moves 25 million cartons a week. It is vital for us to have an engaged, safe, and productive supply chain, and at present, we do have some issues on certain sites as we are renegotiating employment arrangements with our teams on the issue of engineered standards, which is a technical term for reasonably commonplace. They've been in the industry for more than 10 years, productivity standards, so yes, it is important for Woolworths to keep low cost, to keep productive. Why? Because that flows straight through to price.
It flows straight through to our ability to compete and ultimately our ability to generate returns for shareholders. The test we apply for those engineering standards, we think, is a very reasonable one. It's the reasonable person applying reasonable skill at a safe and conscientious pace over the course of a shift. So we are listening to our team members. We're listening to the union representatives on this matter. But it is a matter of vital importance for the continued productivity of the company that we maintain those standards of productivity measures in our workforce.
Chair, this is a third question from Ronald Guy. It is good to see that the direction that Bega is taking in the Bega Valley Circular Economy. Can you update us on the Woolworths' approach to reduction of packaging and the reduction of plastics and CO2? How supportive is the state and federal governments, and do you think any future Liberal government will be as supportive on the Paris Agreement on climate change?
Right. On plastics, I think I answered the question earlier on. I think we have made tangibly real progress. Our own brand is out there leading the pack in this regard. And so that's very important. In our sustainability report, one of the six areas where we think we've got real potential for impact is in the area of circularity. And so we practice what we preach, whether it is through the application of fully recyclable and pooled plastic crates, our pooling of wooden pallets. This is an area I think it's getting real focus within the organization. So I think circularity is something you can continue to expect to hear more from us on. I think it's already embedded as a concept, and we're looking for further instances where we can take advantage of the environmental and sustainability benefits of pooled and circular business models.
Chair, this is a question from shareholder Brian Rathborne. Why don't you give the recommended retail price for all items so that people can see they are buying below the supplier's price?
So if you look at the ticket on a shelf, you will see the price. You'll see its unit price. And if it's on promotion, you'll see the price that it was before. So I think all customers are presented with the information they need to make an informed decision. And of course, as Amanda mentioned in her address earlier on, a lot of the price inquiry is starting online beforehand, which gives customers the ability to spend even more time determining where the best value is for them, which offers they want to take advantage of. So I don't think there's any shortage of information for customers to make an informed decision on pricing. Would you add anything to that, Amanda?
I would just also add that per the earlier comments, we want to be able to make sure that the price a customer's paying is clear and visible when you also put some of the other information that's required on ticketing, best unit price. Adding too many things actually just makes it very difficult as well for customers to be able to read.
What we are also doing on the ticketing side, and as a board, we actually saw this firsthand on a store tour we did yesterday, is also with 2D barcodes, which are like the code you scan, providing even more information to customers on Best By dates, when fresh goods were packaged. And from a health and safety perspective, as a further line of defense on checkout to make sure we're not selling anything that's past its use-by date.
Thank you, Chair. I've got two more questions from shareholder Ronald Guy on behalf of the Regional Trade Union Human Rights Shareholder Group. Does Woolworths, ESG, and procurement vet any agricultural product from illegal settlements in the West Bank? And how does Woolworths interpret the recent United Nations legal opinions and deal with the ongoing community concern?
I'm going to have to take that question on notice from the shareholder, and we will get back to the shareholder. I'm not aware of that risk or has not been elevated to the board in any way. But I don't want to mislead the shareholder. We'll do some more research and come back to the shareholder. Thank you.
Final question from Ronald Guy. Does Woolworths' ESG supply chain avoid agricultural products containing unethically sourced materials in their production? Recently, the European Union upheld the legal position of Western Sahara in regard to Morocco's exploitation of natural resources in fish, etc. In regard to the EU trade agreement, Australian farmers are ethical by using fertilizer from CSBP presently in regard to the Western Sahara phosphate in supply chain. Unfortunately, New Zealand farmers are still using this phosphate from Western Sahara, which Morocco is extracting from this non-self-governing, which is against the UN Hans Corell 2002 legal opinion. Does Woolworths' supply chain avoid this ESG issue?
We certainly extensively diligence all our suppliers against their standards that are required to meet our procurement and modern slavery standards. And that would absolutely incorporate what we thought was any unethical business practices. In respect to the specific ingredient, the fertilizer ingredient you talked to, I'm going to have to take that question on notice as well. And I'll come back to the shareholder. Thank you.
Thank you, Chair. No further questions from online.
That concludes the discussion on item one. Thank you. I confirm that the financial report and the report of directors and the external auditor for the year ended 30 June 2024 have now been received. The next item of business is to consider the remuneration report, which is set out on pages 80 to 103 of the 2024 annual report. This is an advisory resolution that gives shareholders the opportunity to provide feedback on the group's remuneration policies. The remuneration report sets out details of the company's remuneration framework and the remuneration arrangements in place for the directors, the Managing Director and CEO, and other key management personnel. As I mentioned earlier in my address, after receiving a first strike against our remuneration report last year, we've had extensive engagement with many shareholders regarding our remuneration approach.
If at least 25% of the votes are cast against the adoption of the FY 2024 remuneration report, the conditional spill resolution at item five will be put to the meeting as an ordinary resolution. If fewer than 25% of the votes are cast against the adoption of the FY 2024 remuneration report, then there will be no second strike and item five will not be put to the AGM. I now invite questions on resolution two. If there are no more questions in the room, I'll turn to questions online. Oh, excuse me, ASA. Sorry.
I have a question from Julieanne Mills from the Australian Shareholders' Association.
Apologies, Julieanne.
The ASA is pleased with the new CEO's fixed remuneration and the fact that it has been appropriately reduced to AUD 2.1 million from the original from Brad Banducci's AUD 2.6 million. We still have some concerns, though, that the maximum potential remuneration is about 4.2 times that fixed remuneration at AUD 9 million. We understand the need to remunerate to inspire ambition and reward performance. However, 9 million is a long way from the average wage of the majority of its workers. What does the board consider when it comes to setting the quantum of maximum performance fees? Please don't say benchmarking, because as a successful ASX-listed company, you're to some extent setting those benchmarks. Shareholders rely on boards to give due consideration to the appropriateness of targets, scorecard measures, and the quantum. Thank you.
Thank you for your question, and I think I should first say at the outset, when we're talking about levels of remuneration for all executives at Woolworths, it's humbling. These are large figures, and I think we discuss this topic with a degree of humility on the one hand, especially given the plight of our customers at this point in time, but also, we have to hold at the same point in time the need to hire, motivate, and retain the best possible talent to do the best possible job for the organization, and when Amanda was appointed, we did do, obviously, an extensive review of what the appropriate level of compensation was, and while we are part of the benchmark, nonetheless, everybody in this room has got employment alternatives.
It would be naive to think that everybody in this room wouldn't consider alternative compensation for comparable roles if indeed that's what they were looking to do. So yes, we did take into account other organizations. And the benchmarking, I think, very clearly supported the level of pay, both in terms of fixed remuneration at $2.15 million, down from $2.6 million, STI at $150, LTI at $170, was within all respectable benchmarks for a job of the scope and scale, complexity, and intensity. Thank you. Thank you.
Chair, I'd like to introduce Jo Wright, who has a question.
Thank you for the opportunity to ask a question. I'm from the other side in that I'm a team member for Woolworths and work at Supermarket in Bowral. I acknowledge that the remuneration rates for the executive team are low by comparative standards. I'd quote Macquarie Bank, perhaps, as a comparative. But my question is with regards to a team member's rate of pay. So we've just agreed to an enterprise agreement, which I voted against because I felt it signed us up for four more years of voting equality. One of our union representatives also voted against it. There was a great deal of misinformation in the lead-up to the vote. And the Woolworths gift cards that were offered alongside the vote only muddied the waters further. My base hourly rate pays AUD 26.04 per hour. I work every weekend, put my hand up for every public holiday.
My maximum earning potential is around AUD 55,000 per annum. My bonus for the financial year 2024 was absolutely nothing, not even a box of Cadbury Favourites. The managing director of Woolworths Supermarkets, my boss, base salary was 1,000 sorry, 1,080,000 in round figures. And if the maximum weekly work hours for store department management is 45 hours, so I'm told, if this follow suits for the executive team, the managing director earns AUD 500 an hour at the incentives, and that boosts it to AUD 1,087 per hour. As a team member with 10 years' experience and service, I'm paid the same hourly rate as the new person that's just walked through the door. In an attempt to improve their pay, some team members are moving into management positions for which they are ill-equipped.
This is creating mental health issues not only for themselves, but for the team who suffer under the poor management. I have no opportunity to value add to my pay packet through performance alone, which is how the Managing Director and members of the Executive Team are graded. And my question is, sorry, my first question is, why not? Good staff are hard to find, and that's become even more since COVID. I understand that Woolworths needs shareholders to provide the capital for the company to invest in the future, and shareholders expect a return on that investment. Do Woolworths and the shareholders realize that without team members like me, who are responsible for the everyday delivery of both product and service to the customer, that there is no business, there's no profit, there's no dividend?
Why do neither the company or the shareholders not consider increasing pay conditions for team members to a livable wage a worthy investment? It doesn't really seem that we are equitably better together.
Shareholder.
Could I just make one more comment? I agree with the productivity, the attempt for reasonable productivity. I work hard. I'm 64 years old, and I run rings around some of my 20-year-old team members. But I do believe that the RT3 rostering system is unfair. It blends into the issues with safety. And I did actually send a letter to you this week, which hopefully is here or it's certainly at the post office at Bella Vista, with some documentation around that safety things, which I appreciate has been actually mentioned quite substantially in the report. But my AUD 26.04 an hour is just not cutting it, I'm afraid. I think it's actually becoming unaffordable for me to work at Woolworths.
Yep. So team member and shareholder, can I thank you for expressing your views so plainly? And there are elements of that that I would like to address in the context of an AGM. And there are elements of it which I think are best addressed through Amanda and her team talking to you directly about incentive payments and any other aspects of your work experience and opportunities provided to you. So we'd be very happy to give you that direct feedback. What I can say is, at a board level, when we look across all of Woolworths, we measure these things intently because we know they matter. We know voice of team matters. An engaged team member will drive an engaged, better experience for our customers, which is better for business. So it absolutely matters.
We track it intently, not only what the team members think of us as an organization, what they think of our pricing, are they shopping at Woolworths, what they think of their work experience, and the opportunities before them. So everything that you talk to, in an aggregate sense, not in a detailed case by case, comes up to the board. What I will say is that our team, led by Caryn Katsikogiannis , who's in the audience here today (thank you, Caryn), have been working intently on improving the experience of our team members, and it clearly hasn't worked for you, and I'm very sorry to hear that.
But on a bunch of very important metrics, the amount of churn, the additional hours that we are offering our team members, the flexibility that is provided by RT3 that clearly does not work for you but is working for others, and what our teams are telling Woolworths at the moment, those metrics would indicate that we have made significant improvement. I acknowledge it hasn't been your own experience. And what I'd like to do is not take more time in this AGM to talk about you as an individual. I don't think that's fair on you, and I don't think it's fair on all the shareholders. But to acknowledge it as an important driver of Woolworths' success. The board starts its board meetings by looking at pricing, voice of the customer, voice of the team. So it's absolutely front of mind that we get this right.
I do thank you for your candor and courage to raise the issues at the AGM, and I know that Amanda and colleagues will follow up with you afterwards.
If I could just add, my reason for coming here and asking the question in this forum is because from a store level, the voice of the team—so in the last two months in our store, I do actually look, I'm able to see the reports on the boards—42 invitations, 6 responses, 36 invitations, 6 responses in the last two months. And the reason for that is people would say, "What's the point?" And my store manager actually came and asked me because I have diligently done my voice of the team. I'm not shy. I come out, I identify myself. I don't hide behind a mask. And he asked me, "Did you fill out the voice of the team?" And I said, "No." And he said, "Why not?" And I said, "Nothing changes.
I would encourage you not to do that. I would encourage you to have your voice just like you've had your voice here today and fill that out.
I appreciate the time.
Thank you.
But I think it's not a living wage. And I'm fortunate I own most of my house. I can't even imagine how my 23-year-old assistant manager, who's newly engaged, is ever going to afford one, even in a regional area that I come from.
Thank you. Thank you, team member. Thank you, shareholder. There are no more questions in the room. I'll turn to online questions.
Chair, we've had one question come in online from shareholder Stephen Mayne relating to the demerger of Endeavour Group. Are you willing to take that question now?
Yes, I am willing to take that question now.
The question from Stephen Mayne is, "When Endeavour Group was demerged in 2021, then Woolworths Chair Gordon Cairns claimed we were maintaining a 14.6% stake to match Bruce Mathieson's shareholding and ensure long-overdue poker machine reforms would be implemented. Three years later, we've sold out completely. Is that because we'd lost faith in Endeavour's efforts to mitigate the harm suffered by the gamblers who lose more than AUD 1.5 billion a year on Endeavour's 12,500 poker machines? Did we dump our entire Endeavour shareholding because having any association with Australia's biggest poker machine operator is just too risky for our brand?
So thank you, Stephen Mayne, for the question. There are a couple of, I think, elements to that I'm very happy to address. So our decisions to sell down progressively our stake in Endeavour Group have been based on economics and where the best possible use of Woolworths' shareholder funds can be. We did maintain a shareholding somewhat equivalent to the Mathieson's, it wasn't quite the same, but somewhat equivalent to the Mathieson's for a period of time. We made no long-term commitments to maintain that shareholding. We thought that was appropriate in a transitional sense alongside a series of transitional service agreements that was really designed to set Endeavour Group up in its initial phase. But three years later, as other opportunities have come along, we have taken the opportunity to sell down that investment, the last tranche of which resulted in a special dividend to shareholders.
Thank you for the question. That concludes discussions on Resolution 2. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. If you've not yet lodged your vote for this item of business, please do so now. The proxies received for this resolution are now shown on the screen. I intend to vote all open proxies in favor of this item. A voting exclusion applies to this resolution as set out in the notice of meeting. Based on the proxy instructions received and the votes represented today, we have not received a second strike on the adoption of the remuneration report, and accordingly, the spill resolution and item five will not be put to the meeting. I will now move to the re-election of board-endorsed non-executive directors, Maxine Brenner and Philip Chronican. A separate resolution will be put for each director.
The board follows a structured, externally facilitated process to assess the skills and experience of directors both individually and collectively. This input is combined with the outcome of annual external board performance evaluation when determining whether to support the re-election of existing directors. Having followed that process, the board, other than each candidate in respect of their own candidacy, unanimously recommends shareholders vote in favor of the re-election of Maxine and Philip to the Woolworths Group board. I start with agenda item 3A, the resolution to re-elect Maxine Brenner as a non-executive director. Maxine retires by rotation at this meeting and offers herself for re-election.
Maxine has served on the board of Woolworths Group for nearly four years, where she has been an exceptional director, making outstanding contributions to the board's considerations across a wide range of matters, advancing the interests of company and shareholder, and always consistent with her fiduciary and governance responsibilities. Details of Maxine's biographical information are set out in the notice of meeting. Before turning to questions, I invite Maxine to say a few words in relation to her re-election.
Thank you. Thank you, Scott, and good morning, fellow shareholders. I also acknowledge the traditional owners of Darug Country on which we meet and pay my respects to elders past and present. Today, I'm seeking re-election as a director of our company. Since I last addressed our meeting, I was appointed chair of the People Committee, which encompasses all people matters, including safety, remuneration, and workplace matters. Safety always comes first at Woolworths, and this year we have rigorously focused on our safety performance, understanding where our critical risks lie, what we could do better, and more particularly, enhancing our learning safety culture. To evolve our safety learning is critical, as it's this culture which drives us not only to act safer but to have the courage to call things out when they're not.
To this end, we've also changed our safety remuneration metrics so as to capture not only lagging but also leading indicators. This is designed to support and encourage safety awareness, learning, and our safety culture overall. Over the past three years since my election, the board and management team have dealt with a range of issues, from the challenges of COVID and significant supply chain disruption to more recently, the inflationary environment and the consequent significant cost of living pressures and considerable industry scrutiny. We've also overseen the transition of a new CEO, Amanda Bardwell, and we very much welcome her into the new role. Being a board member with over 15 years' experience and having served on a large number of Australian companies, this experience has provided insight into the complexity of many of these challenges and how these learnings can be applied to Woolworths.
Additionally, my executive experience as both a managing director in investment banking and working as a corporate lawyer assists in discussions surrounding capital allocation, portfolio management, corporate management restructuring, and other wider regulatory issues. In a highly dynamic industry environment such as the one Woolworths operates in, this experience is highly relevant and is able to be drawn on to help our deliberations and decision-making. I'm passionate about Woolies. As so many other Australians, Woolies has been a part of my childhood and beyond. I have both the commitment and time to devote myself to the role. With your support, I would be privileged to work with my board colleagues and management to create ongoing value for you, our shareholders, our customers, our employees, communities, and other stakeholders. Thank you. Thanks, Maxine.
Thank you, Maxine. I now invite questions on Resolution 3A.
Chair, I have a question from Natasha Lee.
Natasha.
Thank you. Excuse me. I'm happy with Maxine, and I see that there is reasonably good female representation on the board, although I would ask that the board make a better effort and consider other forms of diversity as it should be more reflective of the community at large. That's the commenting matter for you.
Thank you for that observation, Natasha. The board is acutely aware of walking in the shoes of our customers. And so the challenge for us is always to get feedback from specialists, from our team members, from the broader community so that we can truly understand what it takes to meet our customers' needs. That's not to say that all of those skills are required for as permanent board representation. So we are constantly balancing the need for diversity of thinking, walking in the shoes of our customers, and the skills that are required to be permanently represented on the board. But we do take your observation, and thank you for the spirit in which it's provided.
Thank you.
If there are no more questions in the room, I'll turn to questions online.
Chair, I'm showing no questions for this item.
That concludes the discussion on Resolution 3A. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. If you've not yet lodged your vote for this item of business, please do so now. The proxies received for this resolution are now shown on the screen. I intend to vote all open proxies in favor of this item. I will now move to agenda item 3B, the resolution to re-elect Philip Chronican as a non-executive director. Philip retires by rotation at this meeting and offers himself for re-election. Philip has served on the board for three years and provided valuable contributions on a range of matters, including his time through his extensive strategic, financial, and management expertise, and more recently, in his capacity as chair of the risk committee. Detail of Philip's biographical information are set out in the notice of meeting.
Before turning to questions, I invite Philip to say a few words in relation to his re-election.
Thank you, Scott, and thank you for the opportunity, everyone, to address you. As Scott said, I've now served on the Woolworths Group board for a little over three years, and this has been a period which has seen both highs and lows for the company. First of all, I'd like to thank my fellow directors and the Woolworths leadership team for helping me get to understand an industry which is very different from those in which I had most of my professional career. But while there are significant differences between the retail sector and financial services, there also have been a number of parallels which have emerged in recent times. The Woolworths Group has served its customers well through the disruptions that we experienced in the wake of the COVID pandemic, and it's continued to innovate and improve its effectiveness.
But we've also faced growing challenges from issues like cyber risks, physical risks, and more recently, regulatory and reputational risks. What is critical is that we look to ensure in all we do that we're meeting the standards that the community and our customers expect of us. Woolworths Group is an iconic Australian company with an extensive reach into almost every Australian and New Zealand household. And I know I'm not alone on the board in my belief that the company has a very strong future as a new generation of leaders tackle a new set of challenges. So I'll continue to dedicate my time and efforts to serve our shareholders and to drive Woolworths to making sound decisions for its business that will further its long-term market standing. So thank you for the opportunity to serve you and for your support.
Thank you, Philip. I now invite questions on Resolution 3B. Are there any questions in the room?
Chair, I have a question from Jonathan Moylan on behalf of Adam Benson.
Thank you. This might be a bit of a Dorothy Dixer, but I know that in your capacity as Chair of NAB, you have a very keen interest in nature and biodiversity, and I'm wondering if you have any reflections on that from a Woolworths point of view and where you'd like to see the business in three years' time when you're next up for re-election?
I'm going to answer that question for Phil and encourage you to connect with Phil really after the meeting. As Phil said, I think some of the overlaps with financial services and retail do make for, I think, a real basis of Phil's value add on these topics and others. So I've talked a lot about Woolworths' commitments in these areas, and maybe I'll invite you as a shareholder to pick that up informally with Phil after the meeting. Thank you.
Chair, I have a question from Robert Caterson.
Thank you.
My question is regarding cyber resilience. Remember back in, I think it was July of this year when one of these service providers crashed, not only Woolworths but a number of other businesses. And what are your strategies in place to prevent or minimize those sort of risks? And also because of the rewards platform that we've got and also the online business that we've got, we collect a lot of personal data from our customers. And sort of what protections have we got in place for that? I see that Philip is involved in audit and risk and those sort of things, so I think I'd like an answer on that, please.
Yes. In the context of Phil's re-election, I think the cyber element of what Phil brings to the board is a really quite meaningful one. Financial services have necessarily, by way of their business model, been quite ahead in terms of best practice in this area. So I think we do look to the sector to learn from how they have managed a number of these events. More broadly, at Woolworths, cyber is something that is regularly reviewed at both the risk committee level but also at the board level as well. And we certainly track international developments, domestic breaches, etc., to see what we can learn from those to make sure that we are operating at the best possible practice. Thank you for your question, Caterson. If there are no more questions in the room, I'll turn to questions online.
Chair, I have one question from shareholder Stephen Mayne. Could the chair comment on whether he supports the principle that Woolworths should release its full-year results before the deadline closes for candidates to nominate for the board at the AGM? If some disaster unfolds in the annual results, shareholders need time to arrange changes to the board at the following AGM. If the chair does support this principle, could he listen carefully to Philip Chronican's explanation as to why he doesn't apply this principle at NAB, which he chairs? Could Mr. Chronican rule out lobbying his Woolworths colleagues to move to a premature AGM like the one he runs each year at NAB?
So thank you for the question, shareholder. The sequencing of our results, the proxies, the voting, all accords with what we are advised as good practice in the Australian corporate governance landscape. I certainly won't be interfering in any NAB matters, and nor would I expect Phil to interfere in Woolworths' matters other than with the benefit of wearing a Woolworths director's hat. I'm more than happy to take the shareholder's suggestion and have a chat to Phil if there's anything relevant to the NAB experience that we could bring to bear at Woolworths.
No further questions, Chair.
That concludes discussion on Resolution 3B. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. If you have not yet lodged your vote for this item of business, please do so now. The proxies received for this resolution are now shown on the screen. I intend to vote all open proxies in favor of this item. The next item of business is seeking shareholder approval for a grant of LTI rights to Amanda Bardwell as Managing Director and CEO for FY25. The proposed FY25 LTI grant to Amanda is for 99,182 performance share rights. I'd like to stress that Amanda will only receive the maximum value of this award if our performance targets are exceeded over the three-year period to financial year 2027. Details of those performance hurdles and other key items of performance share rights, including a voting exclusion which applies to this resolution, are set out in the notice of meeting.
I now invite questions on Resolution 4. Are there any questions in the room?
Chair, I have a question on behalf of Sarah Walsh.
Thank you for the opportunity for a question. My question is about how the group and its management has delivered on previous sustainability commitments and how that interferes with long-term incentives. So we've spoken a little bit about, and we've heard from you about the new no deforestation commitment that Woolworths has announced, which is welcome. But it's not entirely new because Woolworths has actually had a commitment to achieve zero net deforestation through the consumer goods supply chain by 2020 back in its 2011 corporate responsibility report. It's been 13 years. In these 13 years, what steps has the company taken to eliminate deforestation from its supply chains in Australia? And if they weren't implemented, what steps will the company take now to ensure this new commitment gets turned into reality? And how will the delivery of this commitment be taken into account in this incentive? Thank you.
Thank you for your question, shareholder. So sunlight is the greatest disinfectant. So our sustainability report will have all of the disclosures out there for shareholders to hold us to account to. We will report on it as we have done methodically through sustainability, through modern slavery, and through the annual report. Woolworths consistently gets investor feedback and broader feedback as to the level and quality of its disclosure on its key sustainability items. So you should expect disclosure and the ability to hold us to account on delivery on all key sustainability matters. So I can't comment on what happened in 2011, I'm sorry, but I will get further advice on that, and we'll take that question on notice and happy to come back to you with some more detail.
Thank you, Chair.
Thank you, shareholder. If there are no more questions in the room, I'll turn to online questions.
Chair, I'm showing no questions for this item.
That concludes the discussion on Resolution 4. If you have not yet lodged your vote for this item of business, please do so now. The proxies received for this resolution are now shown on the screen. I intend to vote all open proxies in favor of this item. A voting exclusion applies to this resolution as set out in notice of meeting. As noted earlier in the meeting, item five will not be put to the meeting as fewer than 25% of the votes cast were cast against the adoption of the FY 2024 remuneration report and item two. I'll now move on to the next item of business. The next item of business relates to resolutions requisitioned by a group of shareholders holding approximately 0.004% of Woolworths Group shares under section 249(n) of the Corporations Act. Resolution 6A seeks an amendment to the Woolworths Group constitution.
Resolutions 6B and 6C are contingent advisory resolutions that will only be put to the meeting if 75% or more of votes cast by shareholders entitled to vote on Resolution 6A are in favor of the resolution. It's the board's intention to allow shareholders as a whole a reasonable opportunity to ask questions on each of Resolutions 6A, 6B, and 6C, even if Resolution 6A is not passed by the requisite majority and Resolutions 6B and 6C are not ultimately put to the meeting. Before we invite questions and ask shareholders to vote on items 6A, B, and C, I would like to remind shareholders that, as I outlined in my address earlier, the issues surrounding salmon sourcing in Macquarie Harbour are complex, with a range of direct and indirect environmental, social, and economic factors to consider. I will now turn to item 6A.
The proposed amendment is intended to insert a new provision in the company's constitution which would enable shareholders by ordinary resolution to express an opinion or request information about the way in which a power of the company vested in the directors has been or should be exercised. The board respects the rights of shareholders to express an opinion or to engage in dialogue with the company, and we see that today. The board further acknowledges the rights of shareholders to request the requisition resolution which seeks to amend the company's constitution. The board firmly supports the engagement with Woolworths Group shareholders and stakeholders, and the group has in place a number of avenues available to these parties to express their opinions about the management of the company.
Woolworths Group has extensive dialogue and interaction with shareholders and stakeholders and consider their views in the preparation of our strategy and plans. The directors, therefore, do not believe that the amendment contemplated by this resolution is required for shareholders to be heard and to express opinions about the management of the company. The board also recognizes the importance of addressing the issues raised in these requisition resolutions, including farmed seafood reporting and farmed salmon sourcing in Macquarie Harbour. For these reasons, and as further detailed in the notice of meeting, the board does not consider changing the constitution to be in the best interests of the company. Consequently, the directors recommend that shareholders vote against Resolution 6A. As the item relates to an amendment of the constitution, a special resolution is required in order for the resolution to be passed.
That means at least 75% of the votes cast must be in favor. The matter is now open for comments and questions. I do understand that Adam Verwey from Six, who requisitioned the resolutions, would like to speak to these items of business, and we welcome that opportunity.
Hi. Thanks for having me and some of my fellow filing shareholders here today. We're going to be speaking on behalf of all of the resolutions at once, not separating them out into separate resolutions. As I mentioned, I'm one of the 121 shareholders who have proposed these resolutions to stop Woolworths' contribution to the potential extinction of Maugean Skate. My organization, Six, assists advocacy groups and investor groups to propose shareholder resolutions when they're facing barriers in trying to have a meaningful engagement with Australian listed companies. The groups who have been working to save Maugean Skate, who live in the communities but are directly impacted by the industrial salmon farms in Macquarie Harbour, needed to advocate as shareholders for the concerns to be taken seriously by Woolworths.
A quarter of the shareholders who propose this resolution live in Tasmania, and some of them had to travel all the way here today to get an audience with the CEO and the board members. I've been working in ethical investment and ESG investing for 20 years, including leading the investment team at one of the 20 largest superannuation funds in the country and also being on the Responsible Investment Committee for Australia's largest ETF manager. For most of those 20 years, Woolworths has not qualified for ESG and ethical investment portfolios due to the exposures to gambling, tobacco, and alcohol sales.
In the last few years, Woolworths has managed to enter into these portfolios because it spun out its unethical business practices, and companies that demonstrate strong ESG performance and have the imprimatur of appearing in ESG investment portfolios have a benefit to shareholders in attracting a premium on the share price. This may be short-lived. Managing nature and biodiversity risks has emerged as a particularly important ESG consideration, and Woolworths is ranked as a clear laggard when it comes to understanding, assessing, and acting on nature risks. When I was first introduced to what was happening in Macquarie Harbour and the plight of the Maugean Skate, I thought there was no chance at all we'd need to go as far as proposing a shareholder resolution to get Woolworths to change a small amount of its salmon supply to stop the potential extinction of an animal.
I thought surely the ESG team, the Sustainable Seafood team, would take a quick action. Surely the board and the executive would step in before it had to get proposed to a shareholder resolution voted on by its many hundreds of thousands of shareholders. While we've been engaging with super funds, with fund managers, proxy service providers, the message is clear, and it's one of disbelief, that we had to propose a world's first shareholder resolution to stop an extinction event. Additionally, the customers of Woolworths are seeing a large amount of media and attention on Woolworths' contribution to this likely extinction event. You've already received from one of our member groups a petition on behalf of 60,000 shoppers, and the ethical super fund who pre-declared their vote in favor of this resolution have over 500,000 members who are also shoppers.
This is a lot of ESG and brand risk for the company to carry for the sake of a small amount of supply for one product line. Has the company quantified how much of its brand value is linked to perceptions around being green, responsible, and sustainable, and potential costs of association with an extinction event? Thank you.
Thank you, Adam. Can I also thank you for the very reasoned and professional manner with which you have put your case to the AGM today? Sustainability of supply from Macquarie Harbour is a matter we are taking very seriously, and I'm aware that you have had interaction with members of the Woolworths team prior to today. It is, however, a complex issue, and there is some conflicting evidence on some important matters whether it relates to causation, oxygenation, stock numbers, the efficacy of breeding program, and I'm sure you'll be the first person to agree the AGM is not the place for a scientific debate on that. We are not the experts.
So for that reason, we are supportive of the federal government's reviews that are currently underway in respect of, via the scientific committee of the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, which we'll call the Department of Environment from this point on, via its scientific committee and its assessment of the extinction status and risk of the Maugean Skate and whether indeed it is, as you have portrayed it, a potential extinction event. And on the other hand, a broader review of salmon farming in the Macquarie Harbour being done under the environmental legislation, EPA. We are supportive of these processes, gathering all the scientific evidence, doing the work, and then being a critical input to advise us in a considered way about what we should do.
We are not close-minded to any scenario that might emerge from those reviews, in addition to the work, by the way, that's being done by other organizations like yourself, like the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, all of which are informing this important debate. We don't take this risk lightly. As I said, we're not predetermining any of the responses that we think would be appropriate. However, we do think that any action we take should be fully informed. Under the auspices of the federal government and the Tasmanian government, considerable work is being done. We would have liked that work to have been concluded earlier, and we will be encouraging, obviously, an expeditious resolution to these matters and the provision to Woolworths of the information that will enable us to make a fully informed and carefully balanced decision.
So we thank you for your challenge to us, and we know that this is your entirely bona fides and your view. And as I said, we look forward to the conclusion of these reviews and the scientific evidence being put to all of us.
Chair, I introduce Jess Coughlan, who is also from the Six organization.
Thank you for having us along. I live in Tasmania, lutruwita, the traditional lands and sea country of the Palawa pakana people. I'm a neighbor of the salmon farms. This motion addresses Woolworths' commitment to sustainability, one of the pillars of its business practices and consumer expectations. This makes the company's decision on where it sources its own brand salmon a crucial one. So let me briefly outline how Woolworths' supply chain may be contributing towards the extinction of a 60 million-year-old animal, the Maugean Skate, from its only habitat in Macquarie Harbour on the west coast of Tasmania. The clear consensus of scientists, including the Commonwealth's Threatened Species Scientific Committee, is that there are catastrophic consequences unless urgent action is taken to remove industrial net pens from the harbour, feedlots that supply some of Woolworths' own brand salmon.
Those words, catastrophic and urgent, are the words of cautious scientists, not given to exaggerated claims. It's a warning that the company's directors and us as shareholders must all heed. Woolworths' own people have already conceded before the Senate greenwashing inquiry that they can't claim own brand salmon from Macquarie Harbour is sustainably sourced and not contributing to the demise of a survivor of the age of the dinosaurs. Moreover, only a small percentage of Woolworths' own brand salmon and ocean trout is sourced from Macquarie Harbour and would only require a simple shift in procurement, making the reputational risk to Woolworths far outweighing the relatively small amount of change that this resolution is asking for. Just last week, we learned through uncovered documents that more than 10% of the salmon farmed in Macquarie Harbour died in the water before harvest last summer.
This amounted to more than 1 million kilog of salmon, yet Woolworths continues to source and sell this product labeled as responsibly sourced. This is just one of many mass mortality events among the livestock in that harbor in recent years and raises serious questions about the long-term viability of the industry in this particular region. This is a case in which Woolworths must abide by the precautionary principle, protecting its reputation and living up to what its customers and shareholders expect. It can do this at no cost to the company, but of great value to the planet. It can be a legacy of lasting change, not one of regret. I would like to acknowledge all of the shareholders and in particular a quarter of the Six cohort, all Tasmanian, for taking the step to become part owners in this company, Woolworths, now our company.
We call on you to make this small shift in procurement to protect shareholders from risk and escape from extinction. Thank you.
Shareholder, can I again thank you for the tone and the manner of that delivery of that question? And I'll repeat myself a little bit, but also go a little deeper on this. It simply isn't the case, according to the advice we're getting, that the science is as black and white as you characterize it. There is conflicting evidence about the degree of reoxygenation in the harbor. There is conflicting evidence about stock numbers. We seek a rapid resolution of these matters from the government and their inquiries so we can make a fully informed decision. We have no interest in precipitating an extinction event. So we look forward to being able to report back to you as soon as we can, as soon as these inquiries are completed. We're in a position to sit down and review all these matters.
There's one other element that I do think needs to be mentioned in the context of this. We are acting in a preemptive fashion in advance of the evidence, we do have to consider the families, the businesses, the livelihoods of people who are associated with these business activities. And while that is not the overriding or overarching concern, it is a relevant consideration. And that cautions us in acting preemptively before this review. But again, we look forward to making our decision in a very transparent way with the best possible evidence. Your assessment may prove to be absolutely correct. We look forward to receiving that and making our decision.
It would be very unfortunate if it is correct because your consumers, your shoppers are not aware when they go into the supermarkets and buy that product, they're not aware. It's not disclosed to them that there is a risk. It's not disclosed to them where this salmon comes from, that it comes from a region that has suffered ecological collapse.
Again, and not meaning to be disrespectful in any manner, but just to challenge the conclusions you seem to be putting to this meeting. As it stands at the moment, all of our supply from Macquarie Harbour is certified as ecologically responsible by independent certifying bodies. Two of those bodies have certified our supply practices as ecologically responsible. We will review the standing of that when the government inquiries have been completed. We're the most esteemed voices on the science that you refer to. Where conclusions can be drawn, and we'll make a fully informed decision, mindful of the interests of all the stakeholders.
On the note of certifications, it is important to also note that ASC, the gold standard of certifications, alongside RSPCA, have both withdrawn their certification from that harbor.
Again, I think that is potentially misleading, shareholder. They haven't withdrawn to the best of our understanding. They just don't offer it. It's not as if they're set up to provide it. So it's not as if ASC have decertified in a proactive act, to the best of our knowledge. They just aren't. They have not got the facility to provide that certification. That's what I've been advised.
It's not true.
Oh, well, that's, unfortunately, we've got a difference of advice at that point. But it is the case that two other certifying bodies are on the record certifying ecological practices in Macquarie Harbour.
That's called shopping around.
Thank you, shareholder. Are there any more questions?
Chair, I'd like to introduce Melissa Hegarty, who has a question.
Thank you.
Hi, team. Thanks for taking my question, and thank you to all the other shareholders who have had brilliant questions today. I am with the Six group. I also have an operations and risk management background, also a former Woolworths employee from many moons ago. I am curious to understand the risk management decision that goes into your marketing when you label the salmon as responsibly sourced. And the reason for this is that if there is to be an inquiry from the ACCC in relation to greenwashing, that will have an effect on the share price. As a shareholder, that is quite concerning. And I know you stated earlier that you didn't agree or didn't support, not necessarily support, but when the ACCC took action on pricing, that wasn't necessarily aligned with how Woolworths thought that would go.
What are you guys doing in terms of protecting the shareholders from that risk of the ACCC or another regulator intervening in terms of greenwashing? And also keen to hear a bit about the process behind the risk management, if perhaps Philip, that might be a question for you in terms of the strategy that sits there.
So thank you, shareholder, for the question. So as it relates to this particular issue and as it relates to the broad-based risk management infrastructure that exists in Woolworths, it is very well developed. Under the auspices of the risk committee, both an identification of our material risks, line one, two, three presence, understanding and quantifying the risk outcomes, developing a risk appetite statement, putting in place mitigations, and constantly reporting on emerging risks and our progress as we get to observe, get to constant improvement on these risks. So yes, we do, in respect of the salmon issue, we do rely on independent certification of our procurement practices as a first line of defense in respect of any allegation of greenwashing. We, of course, undertake our own studies.
They're an input into our own review, but we do rely on those experts to provide that degree of assurance to us.
Can I also understand what the risk tolerance actually is for greenwashing in your marketing?
We think that potential greenwashing risk is a high risk for the company. So we don't take these things lightly.
Okay. I think that, you know, given the, and this is a comment, but given that this is a small amount of your product, to mitigate that risk, it would be a good idea to just remove the farming from the Macquarie Harbour.
I think I've given a fulsome response to that question. Thank you, shareholder.
Thank you so much.
Hello.
Chair, I'd like to introduce shareholder Kelly Johnson-Roebuck, who is part of the NGOs collaborating with Six group.
Great. I will continue to take questions on this matter if they are truly incremental to the discussion we've had. I will just say at the outset, I don't think it's respectful, and I think, by the way, that all the questions today have been fine, but I'm just warning in advance, if there's going to be persistent questioning on the same topic, I don't think it's respectful to all the other shareholders' time for those in person present and online. But please, shareholder.
Good afternoon, board and fellow shareholders. I have over 15 years of experience working in the space of sustainable seafood procurement policies, including those of major North American retailers and globally. I also have over 15 years of experience engaging with seafood certifications. For example, my organization was a steering committee member on the Salmon Aquaculture Dialogue that created the Aquaculture Stewardship Council Salmon Standard. Most recently, I was a steering group member for the International Social and Environmental Accreditation and Labelling's Code of Good Practice for Sustainability Certifications. I also come here today as a Tasmanian. The certifications that Woolworths relies on to sell Macquarie Harbour as responsibly sourced are facing calls from more than 80 global groups to revoke their certificates from the harbour.
Additionally, in May, 73 groups from 18 countries called out the Best Aquaculture Practices Certification, one of the schemes Woolworths relies on as greenwashing. The groups listed damning evidence of numerous BAP certified farms and facilities associated with environmental damage, illegal activities, negative impacts to endangered species, and even forced labor and child labor. Appearing at the Senate inquiry into greenwashing, Woolworths' interim chief sustainability officer acknowledged that certifications are not a silver bullet. Additionally, Australia's leading seafood certifier, the ASC, has refused to certify Macquarie Harbour salmon. Concerning certifications, does Woolworths have a policy to preference BAP certification over ASC certification where there is a conflict? At what point does the company do its own due diligence to reduce the risk of greenwashing from an over-reliance on certifications? And will Woolworths remove sustainability claims from salmon sourced from Macquarie Harbour to avoid greenwashing risk?
Thank you, shareholder, for the question. Again, I think many elements of the question have been asked before, but just to summarize out of courtesy, of course, the independent certification is an element of our process. As I mentioned before, we do do our own reviews, but we do rely on expert advice. Some of the allegations you've made against the certifying authority are prima facie troubling, and I would invite you to share that information with our sustainability team. Simon's here. It's not our understanding. We understand that they are a reputable organization, so I certainly hope you've got some facts to back that one up. But we continue to adopt the stance that we are open to all options in respect of Macquarie Harbour. We will make our mind up when the government reviews the evidence it's put to us.
Meanwhile, we rely on expert independent parties who maintain certification of Macquarie Harbour. Thank you, shareholder, for the question.
If I can follow up on that, are you able to remove the responsibly sourced labels until you wait out the government process at least?
That was preempting the government process. I think, as I've said, we will wait the government process, which hopefully can come quickly in order for us to make that decision. Thank you.
Chair, I'd like to introduce Alistair Allan from Tasmania.
Thank you.
Good afternoon.
Alistair, have you got a new question, or is it more of the same?
Yeah, it is actually different, but I changed it quickly in my head while I was listening to your answers.
Good.
So it's an on-the-fly. What I'm interested in, what I keep hearing you repeat, is that you're waiting on a government process. Can you advise why it's in the interest of shareholders and your company to what is becoming a large political issue to wait at the behest of politics rather than the interest of what you acknowledged at the beginning of this is your trust is eroding in the brand? So why not? Why wait on the inaction of politicians and that clunky process when Woolworths can be a clear leader in the space?
Look, I think, firstly, we're relying on the bureaucratic processes, yes, from the bureaucracy within the Department of the Environment to bring together all the science. We're just not. We're retailers. We're not marine biologists. So we are looking for the best possible forum to bring together all the evidence in a very transparent way so that we can make our decision, and that is, we believe, is the appropriate forum to do that, and clearly, we will be very much informed by the results of these inquiries.
As a brief follow-up to that, can you give me another example where Woolworths has done that off the top of your head, waited for a government decision before making a call?
We are currently waiting for regulatory outcomes in respect of safety events that will impact practice on a number of fronts. We frequently do that.
Okay, cool. Thank you. Thank you.
Chair, I have a question from shareholder Anisha Humphreys.
Thank you. Woolworths has committed to piloting TNFDs with your salmon supply chain, which is great. Where are you up to with this? Where's the progress? And specifically with the salmon supply chain, and when can we see this?
As I mentioned earlier, thank you for your question, shareholder. The progress on that is in its early days as we, outside of our responsible sourcing policy, which I think I've talked to in detail. We, of course, do our own due diligence on suppliers. We rely on independent parties and expert certifiers. We acknowledge that there is risk in the global seafood supply chain, and it's an area we're constantly looking to improve in. I'm not by any stretch saying that we've got that absolutely perfect. It's actually a global challenge for the industry. So I think you'll see more from us on this topic as our work in TNFD and enhanced reporting gathers momentum.
Thank you. Any hints on the timeline of that?
Next sustainability report.
Okay. Thank you.
Thank you.
Chair, I'd like to reintroduce Jess Coughlan from Six, who has a follow-up question.
Thank you.
So last week, my organization uncovered documents via Right to Information revealing that the salmon farming operations in Macquarie Harbour lost 1.15 million kilog of fish between September 2023 and March 2024. What these mortality figures do amount to is 12% of the annual production lost in just six months. This is not the first time an incident like this has happened. 1.35 million fish died over six months in 2018, with 42 mortality events above the reportable threshold occurring in the past five years. Third-party certifiers, ASC and RSPCA, have stopped certifying the region entirely. This indicates major concern over the increasingly inhospitable environment that Macquarie Harbour is becoming for the salmon industry, for both salmon and the skate. What I'm bringing to the attention of shareholders is risk.
How does Woolworths plan to mitigate the risk to its own brand and responsibly source seafood policy and ensure stable supply and stable pricing without shifting away from products farmed in Macquarie Harbour?
Thank you, shareholder, for the question. I believe I've answered that question already. Thank you. If there are no more questions in the room, I'll now turn to questions online.
Chair, I have two questions online. The first question is from shareholder Wayne McNeary. Question to the Chair. The sustainable questions being raised today need to understand if we, as a company, do not increase sales, we will go broke. Does the board and chair agree we need to focus on sales first and then other items as required?
No, I don't agree with that. I think we need to make very balanced decisions in respect of what we sell and the sustainability of it. So whilst, of course, we have to stay in business, if need be, we will make tough decisions if we think it's in the best long-term interests of Woolworths as a corporation that may result in sales being sacrificed.
Thank you, Chair. The second question online is from shareholder Stephen Mayne. The annual report claims we have just over 374,000 shareholders. However, less than 2% of them will vote today on all resolutions. Will you follow the lead of Qantas, Suncorp, Tabcorp, and the ASX over the past week and disclose the voting results like at a scheme meeting where you also reveal how many shareholders voted for and against each item? This will make public Woolworths' retail shareholder sentiment on issues like Rem and salmon farming rather than having the voting results dominated by US-based index funds and the likes of AustralianSuper. Such disclosure will also stimulate future retail shareholder participation. Chair, earlier in the meeting, you said sunlight is the best disinfectant. You have the data, so please let the sun shine in on Australia's chronically low retail shareholding voting rates.
Thank you, Stephen Mayne, for that question. I'm beginning to regret that metaphor. We are comfortable that our practice of disclosing to the ASX the outcomes for each of the items put to the AGM, including all validly appointed proxies and votes, that it aligns with legal and governance requirements and is still the prevailing best practice in this market. I will take your question on notice. I will take it away and open and just check again that our practice is good practice. I'll take that up with our company secretary and chief legal officer. Thank you.
Thank you, Chair. No further online questions.
That concludes discussion on this item. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. The proxies received for Resolution 6A, B, and C are now shown on the screen. As I mentioned earlier, Resolution 6A is a special resolution and will only pass if more than 75% of the votes are cast in favor. I intend to vote all open proxies against this item. If you have not yet lodged your vote for this item of business, please do so now. Based on the proxy instructions received and the votes represented today, 75% of the votes have not been cast in favor, and accordingly, the proposed amendments to the Constitution have not been passed. As such, Resolution 6B and 6C will not be put to the meeting.
As I said earlier, we welcome shareholder debate and feedback, so I will allow a reasonable opportunity for shareholders to ask any further questions on 6B and C. I would also remind shareholders to consider if their questions have been effectively answered in the prior discussion. I now invite any further questions on items 6B and C. If there are no more questions in the room, I'll turn to online questions.
Chair, no online questions.
That concludes the discussion on these items. Thank you again, ladies and gentlemen. That also concludes the formal items of business for today's meeting. I would like to remind shareholders who have not yet cast their votes on all resolutions to do so now. I declare the poll closed. As mentioned earlier, the results of the AGM will be announced to the ASX later today and placed on the website. A full transcript along with a webcast of the meeting will also be available on the website. I would like to thank all of my board colleagues, Amanda Bardwell, the Group Executive Leadership Team, and all of our team members for their dedication and commitment over the last year. Finally, I would like to thank shareholders for your ongoing support of Woolworths Group and for attending today's meeting. That concludes the 2024 Annual General Meeting.
I invite you all to join me now, my fellow directors and senior management, in the foyer outside for refreshments to acknowledge our 100-year history. Today, I'm also delighted that we will be serving items that feature some of the very first own-brand products, including honey, green peas, beetroot, and, of course, the humble sausage roll. I hope you've enjoyed the vintage confectionery counter that is on display in the foyer area. If you haven't already, I encourage you to take a look. Thank you all very much.