Ethisphere Institute Names Safeway Inc. to World's Most Ethical Companies List

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Mar 14, 2013, 01:00 ET

PLEASANTON, Calif., March 14, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Safeway Inc. (NYSE: SWY) has been named one of the 2013 World's Most Ethical Companies (WME) by the Ethisphere Institute. This is the third time that Safeway has been recognized by Ethisphere for its commitment to maintaining superior business practices.

"We are honored to be included in this prestigious list and humbled to be in the company of the most admired and principled businesses in the world," said Larree Renda, Safeway Executive Vice President and Chair of the Safeway Foundation. "Safeway, at all times, strives to be an exemplary corporate citizen and a trusted partner. It is a commitment we make every day to our employees, business partners and the many communities we serve throughout North America."

The Ethisphere Institute is a think tank dedicated to the creation, advancement and sharing of best practices in business ethics, corporate social responsibility, anti-corruption and sustainability. For the past seven years, it annually selects companies from throughout the world for its prestigious WME list.

Safeway was selected for the WME list from thousands of nominated companies representing more than 100 countries and 36 industries. In its announcement of this year's WME list, Ethisphere Institute said "the WME list recognizes companies that truly go beyond making statements about doing business 'ethically' and translate those words into action. WME honorees not only promote ethical business standards and practices internally, they exceed legal compliance minimums and shape future industry standards by introducing best practices today."

The methodology for the WME list includes reviewing codes of ethics, litigation and regulatory infraction histories; evaluating the investment in innovation and sustainable business practices; looking at activities designed to improve corporate citizenship; and studying nominations from senior executives, industry peers, suppliers and customers.

Safeway is an industry leader in ethical business practices, environmental sustainability and effective community outreach. The company has repeatedly been named to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, the Carbon Disclosure Project, the Newsweek's Green Rankings, and placed Number 1 on Greenpeace's Supermarket Seafood Sustainability Scorecard. Safeway upholds an operating philosophy that is rooted in corporate social responsibility and is focused on four key fundamentals: People, Products, Community, and the Planet. These fundamentals are "The Heart of Safeway," bringing together a passion for food and serving customers with the rapidly developing needs of communities and the planet.

To view the complete list of the 2013 World's Most Ethical Companies, please visit http://www.ethisphere.com.

ABOUT SAFEWAY www.SAFEWAY.com

Safeway Inc. is a Fortune 100 company and one of the largest food and drug retailers in North America, based on sales. The company operates 1,641 stores in the United States and western Canada and had annual sales of $44.2 billion in 2012. The company's common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SWY.

ABOUT THE ETHISPHERE INSTITUTE

The research-based Ethisphere^® Institute is a leading international think tank dedicated to the creation, advancement and sharing of best practices in business ethics, corporate social responsibility, anti-corruption and sustainability. Ethisphere Magazine, which publishes the globally recognized World's Most Ethical Companies Ranking™, is the quarterly publication of the Institute. Ethisphere provides the only third-party verifications of compliance programs and ethical cultures that include: Ethics Inside^® Certification, Compliance Leader Verification^™ and Anti-Corruption Program Verification^™. The Institute's premier membership group, the Business Ethics Leadership Alliance™, is a business ethics forum that includes more than 100 leading corporations, universities and institutions that collectively leverage their experience, expertise and innovative ways to address emerging compliance challenges. More information on the Ethisphere Institute, including ranking projects and membership, can be found at http://www.ethisphere.com.

Safeway Contact: Teena Massingill 925-467-3810, [email protected]

SOURCE Safeway Inc.