Industry heavyweights have declared war on shrinkage after levels shot up 6.6% last year alone.

A host of retailers and manufacturers, including Tesco, Asda, Procter & Gamble and Diageo, have teamed up with ECR Europe and shrink management specialists Checkpoint Systems to tackle losses between production and point of sale caused by employee theft, shoplifting, admin errors and vendor fraud.

The four-year project will explore: the impact shrinkage has on on-shelf availability the latest developments in mobile scanning technology the link between employee satisfaction and theft and the new challenges arising from the evolution of multi-channel retailing.

“With shrinkage rates on the increase, this research project will extend our understanding of the problem and its impact on the retail industry,” said Checkpoint VP Neil Matthews. “With better visibility of the issue, we can transform the future of loss prevention.”

The project will be co-chaired by Ahold’s head of group asset protection John Fonteijn and P&G’s on-shelf availability director Colin Peacock.

“I am confident we will uncover new perspectives into a wide range of aspects to better manage the problem of loss,” Fonteijn said.

Peacock added: “New knowledge is essential in developing more effective methods of loss prevention to aid retailers and manufacturers to better manage loss.”

The most recent Global Retail Theft Barometer report, carried out by Checkpoint across 43 countries, revealed that worldwide losses caused by retail shrinkage between July 2010 and June 2011 totalled £74bn, a rise of 6.6% year-on-year and 13.9% over five years.

It also found the product in the grocery chain most likely to go walkabout was cheese.

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