Ahold has announced that Henny de Ruiter is to resign as chairman of its supervisory board at the next general meeting in October in the wake of investor pressure at the troubled Dutch retailer.

Karel Vuursteen will succeed De Ruiter as chairman, with further changes to the board to be made at the 2004 AGM in May.

Meanwhile, Ahold’s chief executive officer Anders Moberg has been forced to waive his guaranteed severance payment and guaranteed bonus on the back of public pressure.

Ahold also admitted that sales at its flagship chain Albert Heijn declined during a consumer boycott as part of an ongoing protest against Moberg’s salary package last week. A report in the Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant said sales had fallen 5%.