Home
| About
| Mine Tracker
| RSS
| Footer
▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ █▄▄░▄▄█░▄▄▀█░▄▄▀█▀▄▀█░▄▄███░▄▄▀█░▄▄▀█░▄▀███▄▄░▄▄█░▄▄▀█░▄▄▀█▀▄▀█░▄▄█░▄▄▀█░▄▄▀██▄██░███▄██▄░▄█░██░ ███░███░▀▀▄█░▀▀░█░█▀█░▄▄███░▀▀░█░██░█░█░█████░███░▀▀▄█░▀▀░█░█▀█░▄▄█░▀▀░█░▄▄▀██░▄█░███░▄██░██░▀▀░ ███░███▄█▄▄█▄██▄██▄██▄▄▄███▄██▄█▄██▄█▄▄██████░███▄█▄▄█▄██▄██▄██▄▄▄█▄██▄█▄▄▄▄█▄▄▄█▄▄█▄▄▄██▄██▀▀▀▄ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
Article; Leefbaar loon voor theeplukkers lijkt uit zicht na overname van Unilevers theedivisie
https://www.ftm.nl/artikelen/leefbaar-loon-voor-unilevers-theeplukkers-uit-zicht?share=MuxZbTTOr6W5BG7HAaXhNkG2zyTrpkz2U1Zu46dabMF2fTfxbuhc0iqONXNCQZs%3D
Na een jarenlange stroom van misstanden in de productieketen en stokkende omzet verkocht Unilever zijn theebusiness, met merken als Lipton en Pukka, vorig jaar aan private equity investeerder CVC Capital. Voor kwetsbare theeplukkers in de keten werd het er niet beter op. ‘Dit zal de problemen die er nu al in de theesector zijn verergeren, zoals uitbuiting, lage lonen en misbruik.’
https://www.ftm.nl/artikelen/leefbaar-loon-voor-unilevers-theeplukkers-uit-zicht?share=MuxZbTTOr6W5BG7HAaXhNkG2zyTrpkz2U1Zu46dabMF2fTfxbuhc0iqONXNCQZs%3D
Na een jarenlange stroom van misstanden in de productieketen en stokkende omzet verkocht Unilever zijn theebusiness, met merken als Lipton en Pukka, vorig jaar aan private equity investeerder CVC Capital. Voor kwetsbare theeplukkers in de keten werd het er niet beter op. ‘Dit zal de problemen die er nu al in de theesector zijn verergeren, zoals uitbuiting, lage lonen en misbruik.’
Paper, Revealing and concealing power in the sustainable tea
supply chain
https://research-api.cbs.dk/ws/files/69553351/matthew_archer_et_al_its_up_to_the_market_to_decide_publishersversion.pdf
In 2007, Unilever, the world’s largest tea company, announced plans to source its entire tea supply sustainably, beginning with the certification of its tea producers in East Africa to Rainforest Alliance standards. As a major buyer of Kenyan tea, Unilever’s decision pushed tea producers across Kenya to subscribe to Rainforest Alliance’s sustainable agriculture standard in order to maintain access to the global tea market; according to a 2018 report, over 85% of Kenya’s tea producers were Rainforest Alliance certified. Drawing on ethnographic material among supply chain actors across different sites along the sustainable tea value chain (from those designing and disseminating standards to tea traders to smallholder tea farmers), this article examines how these actors frequently attributed the power to determine the outcomes of certification to a faceless ‘market’. Deferring to ‘the market’, we observe, served primarily to mask theoutsized power of lead firms (in particular Unilever) to determine conditions of tea production and trade. At the same time, ‘the market’ was also in some cases qualified by our interlocutors, allowing them implicitly (and at times explicitly) to reveal power and give it a face.
https://research-api.cbs.dk/ws/files/69553351/matthew_archer_et_al_its_up_to_the_market_to_decide_publishersversion.pdf
In 2007, Unilever, the world’s largest tea company, announced plans to source its entire tea supply sustainably, beginning with the certification of its tea producers in East Africa to Rainforest Alliance standards. As a major buyer of Kenyan tea, Unilever’s decision pushed tea producers across Kenya to subscribe to Rainforest Alliance’s sustainable agriculture standard in order to maintain access to the global tea market; according to a 2018 report, over 85% of Kenya’s tea producers were Rainforest Alliance certified. Drawing on ethnographic material among supply chain actors across different sites along the sustainable tea value chain (from those designing and disseminating standards to tea traders to smallholder tea farmers), this article examines how these actors frequently attributed the power to determine the outcomes of certification to a faceless ‘market’. Deferring to ‘the market’, we observe, served primarily to mask theoutsized power of lead firms (in particular Unilever) to determine conditions of tea production and trade. At the same time, ‘the market’ was also in some cases qualified by our interlocutors, allowing them implicitly (and at times explicitly) to reveal power and give it a face.
Report, Certified Unilever Tea Small Cup, Big Difference? (2011)
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1961574
For this study one hundred tea workers were interviewed on a total of eight tea plantation companies, all supplying tea to Unilever. Seven of these plantations are located in India and the remaining plantation concerns Unilever?s own tea plantation in Kenya. It was found that working conditions on tea estates that supply Unilever are problematic despite having been certified by the sustainability standard system RA. This in turn raises concerns about the effectiveness and credibility of this standard. On all the RA certified estates in India there were issues with wages either including too few benefits or partly being paid in kind and not in cash. Also women workers are being discriminated against (promotion, benefits), many casual workers remain permanently casual and workers are applying pesticides without protective gear. Moreover, most of these issues constitute violations of Indian labour legislation and ILO standards as well as Unilever?s own standards for suppliers. All of them are violations of RA standards and should lead to withdrawal of RA certification.
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1961574
For this study one hundred tea workers were interviewed on a total of eight tea plantation companies, all supplying tea to Unilever. Seven of these plantations are located in India and the remaining plantation concerns Unilever?s own tea plantation in Kenya. It was found that working conditions on tea estates that supply Unilever are problematic despite having been certified by the sustainability standard system RA. This in turn raises concerns about the effectiveness and credibility of this standard. On all the RA certified estates in India there were issues with wages either including too few benefits or partly being paid in kind and not in cash. Also women workers are being discriminated against (promotion, benefits), many casual workers remain permanently casual and workers are applying pesticides without protective gear. Moreover, most of these issues constitute violations of Indian labour legislation and ILO standards as well as Unilever?s own standards for suppliers. All of them are violations of RA standards and should lead to withdrawal of RA certification.
Paper, Sustainable Tea at Unilever (2012)
https://blogs.ubc.ca/courseblogsis_ubc_ba_504_001_2014w1-2_45258-sis_ubc_ba_504_001_2014w1-2_45258/files/2015/08/Sustainable-Tea-at-Unilever.pdf
In 2010, Unilever announced its commitment to a new “Sustainable Living Plan,” a document that set wide-ranging, companywide goals for improving the health and well-being of consumers, reducing environmental impact, and, perhaps most ambitiously, sourcing 100% of agricultural raw materials sustainably by 2020. Such a goal implied a massive transformation of a supply chain that sourced close to 8 million tons of commodities across 50 different crops. Unilever CEO Paul Polman believed that the company’s ambitious goals could drive savings, product innovation, and differentiation across the company’s portfolio of products.
https://blogs.ubc.ca/courseblogsis_ubc_ba_504_001_2014w1-2_45258-sis_ubc_ba_504_001_2014w1-2_45258/files/2015/08/Sustainable-Tea-at-Unilever.pdf
In 2010, Unilever announced its commitment to a new “Sustainable Living Plan,” a document that set wide-ranging, companywide goals for improving the health and well-being of consumers, reducing environmental impact, and, perhaps most ambitiously, sourcing 100% of agricultural raw materials sustainably by 2020. Such a goal implied a massive transformation of a supply chain that sourced close to 8 million tons of commodities across 50 different crops. Unilever CEO Paul Polman believed that the company’s ambitious goals could drive savings, product innovation, and differentiation across the company’s portfolio of products.
Unilever Supplier Lists
Know-the-Chain's scorecard for food giant Unilever says approvingly that the company is "disclosing more information on its forced labor policies and practices than its peers across all themes". When looking at the actual supplier lists the company provides, it shows how low the bar is: it will have company names but no contact details, adressess, not even the country in all cases. Having for instance rainforest alliance certification codes available would also be a great help in verifying claims made. Finding the supplier lists took some googling as well, although they all seemed to be linked from this page.
Here are the ones I found:
Global Cocoa Suppliers – direct sourcing
2020 Soybean Suppliers Disclosure
2020 Tea Suppliers Disclosure
2020 Palm Oil supplier Disclosure
Know-the-Chain's scorecard for food giant Unilever says approvingly that the company is "disclosing more information on its forced labor policies and practices than its peers across all themes". When looking at the actual supplier lists the company provides, it shows how low the bar is: it will have company names but no contact details, adressess, not even the country in all cases. Having for instance rainforest alliance certification codes available would also be a great help in verifying claims made. Finding the supplier lists took some googling as well, although they all seemed to be linked from this page.
Here are the ones I found:
Global Cocoa Suppliers – direct sourcing
2020 Soybean Suppliers Disclosure
2020 Tea Suppliers Disclosure
2020 Palm Oil supplier Disclosure