2023 Natural Grocers Environmental, Social, and Governance Report

Protecting Biodiversity Biodiversity is vital for the processes that support all life on our planet. Without a diverse range of animals, plants, and microorganisms, the ecosystems on which we rely will collapse. The health and resilience of our planet’s ecosystems are foundational to healthy and nutritious diets, and critical to the protection of food security. We support biodiversity by being a marketplace for products sourced from vendors that prioritize practices that nurture the health of animals, our communities, and the planet. We educate customers on sustainable and humane practices by communicating our high meat, seafood, and dairy standards in our stores. We also believe good things happen when we all work together. We raise funds to transition parks and playing fields to organic management practices. And, during our Earth Day event we ask customers to pledge to never to use chemicals that harm beneficial insects. By integrating biodiversity supportive practices into our product standards and offerings we further contribute to the preservation and sustainability of our natural environment. We aim to not only offer high-quality natural products, but to also contribute to the protection and restoration of biodiversity.

Climate Change Governance: We believe that climate change has the potential to impact our operations and supply chain. The potential long-term effects of climate change are physical, such as possibilities of extreme weather or the impact of rising temperatures on food production, and transitional, such as regulatory or technological changes. Our Board oversees the challenges of climate change. Our Executive Management Team directs climate-related activities and considers climate-related issues when reviewing strategy and expenditures. In FY23 we established an ESG Steering Committee which is comprised of leaders from throughout the organization and has a mission to advance our ESG initiatives. Our Founding Principles are consistent with addressing climate change. Climate change mitigation: We recognize that our actions impact the climate. We continue to invest in and improve on operational efficiencies with the potential to reduce emissions that may contribute to climate change. Our rigorous product standards align with regenerative farming techniques intended to support carbon sequestration. By featuring these products in our stores, we seek to potentially reduce the impacts of climate change.

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NATURAL GROCERS ® | ESG REPORT