Multinationals Under Scrutiny: Highlighting Human Rights and Supply Chain Issues in 7 Major Corporations by Candriam
In a recent study, the asset management company Candriam, which manages €144 billion in assets, investigated the level of human rights protection in the food supply chains. The study, conducted by Esg analyst Sairindri Christisabrina and Vincent Compiegne, deputy global head of Esg investments and research at Candriam, focused on the coffee and cocoa supply chain, specifically Nestlé SA's involvement.
The research revealed that while the food industry has made progress, there is still a need for improved international standardization and transparency in supply chain reporting. The study found that only 3.2% of the evaluated companies have made their lists of suppliers in high-risk supply chains public, and in the food & beverage sector, 68.4% do not provide information on the structure and risks of their supply chain.
If focusing on human rights risks, only 30.5% of food & beverage companies have provided specific descriptions of these risks. The study relies on each company's judgment to collect information on their respective supply chains and determine what information is disclosed and what remains confidential.
The lack of international standardization of reporting requirements in the food industry is a significant challenge. Poverty, lack of formal education, and poor working conditions are some of the systemic challenges that persist in global agricultural supply chains, particularly in developing countries where coffee is grown.
Key human rights risks highlighted in Candriam's research include child labor and exploitation, poor working conditions, gender inequality, land rights and displacement, and lack of access to services. These risks reflect the ongoing challenges in global agricultural supply chains, particularly in developing countries where coffee is grown.
If you need Candriam’s specific findings, more detailed reports or official publications from Candriam would be necessary to provide precise and up-to-date information. The researchers at Candriam also analyzed the revenue dependence of seven consumer goods companies on certain commodities, but the study did not return specific information regarding the human rights risks associated with the coffee supply chain as researched by Candriam.
- The asset management company Candriam, which manages €144 billion in assets, discovered in a study that while progress has been made in the food industry, there is still a need for enhanced international standardization and transparency in supply chain reporting.
- In the study, it was found that only 3.2% of the evaluated companies have made their lists of suppliers in high-risk supply chains public, and 68.4% in the food & beverage sector do not provide information on the structure and risks of their supply chain.
- Key human rights risks highlighted in the study include child labor and exploitation, poor working conditions, gender inequality, land rights and displacement, and lack of access to services, which reflect the ongoing challenges in global agricultural supply chains, particularly in developing countries where coffee is grown.
- The study also analyzed the revenue dependence of seven consumer goods companies on certain commodities, but it did not provide specific information regarding the human rights risks associated with the coffee supply chain as researched by Candriam.
