BGF Retail旗下CU扩大地方政府合作和公益餐食等社会贡献项目

The retail industry's social value creation activities are expanding beyond past efforts centered on environmental cleanup, such as tree planting and litter collection, into diverse fields reflecting social change and the latest trends. The targets of support are also becoming more varied, extending beyond local communities and vulnerable groups to include children, young people and small business owners.
According to the industry on the 25th, BGF Retail, which operates the convenience store chain CU, signed an "ON Dongne Pyeonan" business agreement with Jeju City last month and is participating in identifying at-risk households. The project uses the infrastructure of 434 CU convenience stores in Jeju City to identify at-risk households, including those at risk of isolation, and provides convenience store living vouchers to encourage them to go outside.
BGF Retail provides a system that allows at-risk households in welfare blind spots to be reported through the reporting function of its point-of-sale (POS) system, and promotes and guides franchise owners on its use. It has also placed the "Help Request QR" operated by the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) in stores to actively identify at-risk households. Jeju City connects with those reported by providing customized welfare services.
The convenience store living voucher is worth 50,000 won per month and is provided to 50 young people at risk of isolation. It works by encouraging them to go outside for everyday consumption activities at least once a week to help ease social isolation. Purchases of alcohol and tobacco with the voucher are restricted. BGF Retail and Jeju City plan to run the program on a trial basis through December and then expand it after making improvements.
BGF Retail is expanding its support regions and targets based on the results confirmed in earlier regional projects. This agreement was also based on the results of the "Huimang ON-na" project conducted in Nam-gu, Ulsan, last year. Through that project, Nam-gu, Ulsan, newly selected 619 people for intensive management, improving its performance in identifying welfare blind spots.
Lee Eun-kwan, head of BGF Retail's CX division, said, "CU is carrying out various social contribution projects to fulfill its social responsibility as a public infrastructure in daily life that protects alleys and neighborhoods." He added, "Going forward, CU, as a good friend of the local community, will continue to strengthen collaboration with more local governments."
Behind BGF Retail's expansion of the project to multiple local governments is the growth of single-person households. As single-person households increase, cases of reclusive isolation among middle-aged and young people with little social contact are also rising. Due to the characteristics of those in reclusive isolation, there are limitations in that they either do not approach welfare systems on their own or avoid contact altogether, making them administratively difficult to detect.
CU is recognized as having the core capability to directly identify at-risk households by staying close to the field, as a platform centered on neighborhood alley commerce that is open 24 hours. Because it can create synergy with local governments' welfare blind spot identification projects, it is continuing to increase collaboration with local governments.
Meanwhile, BGF Retail is also creating social value through product launches. On the 21st, the company teamed up with the Seoul Metropolitan Government to introduce five types of "SEOUL MY SOUL Healthy Convenience Meals." These products are a new type of social value creation model that combines Seoul's policy aimed at healthy lives for its citizens with CU's product strategy, which is leading the healthy pleasure trend in convenience stores.
The SEOUL MY SOUL Healthy Convenience Meals are based on the concept of a healthy meal enjoyed in daily life, aiming for a low-fat, low-sugar, high-protein diet composed of low-sugar sauces, chicken breast, tofu, eggs and chickpea rice. The types are lunch boxes, gimbap, triangular gimbap and sandwiches, priced at 5,600 won or less so they can be enjoyed without burden. The products can be purchased at CU stores in the Seoul metropolitan area.
Part of the sales proceeds from these products is set aside as donations and given to the Community Chest of Korea for use in social contributions such as supporting undernourished children.