Launch of the Converged Human Rights and Environmental Due Diligence Assessment Tool
WASHINGTON, November 22, 2024 — Members of AIM-Progress and The Consumer Goods Forum Human Rights Coalition, which includes major fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies, are delighted to have partnered with the Fair Labor Association and Proforest to develop and launch the new “Converged Human Rights and Environmental Due Diligence (HREDD) Assessment Tool.”
The open-source tool is designed to help businesses identify, prevent, and address potential risks to human rights and the environment across their business operations and supply chains. It is intended to support a wide range of industries, helping all types of businesses assess and improve HREDD practices by standardizing content, requirements, and language, promoting a unified approach to HREDD maturity assessments across the FMCG sector and beyond.
Initially created by FLA with support from Nestlé, the tool was further adapted and piloted by Proforest, with valuable input from both buyers and suppliers. By leveraging the tool’s extensive results companies can self-assess their due diligence systems and engage with suppliers, identifying areas to strengthen practices in relation to their own operations and supply chains for goods and services.
Though its use is voluntary, this tool serves as a best-practice reference, fostering supplier engagement and continuous improvement in human rights and environmental due diligence. Aligned with the OECD Due Diligence Guidance and UN Guiding Principles (UNGPs), it promotes global cross-sector alignment, ultimately reducing suppliers’ reporting burden across multiple buyers.
“Converging approaches is central to AIM-Progress’s mission and, we believe, key to effective human rights and environmental due diligence that positively impacts lives throughout supply chains. This tool would not have been possible without the openness of members such as Nestlé, who shared the foundational work they initiated with the FLA, and without the valued partnership and collaboration of The Consumer Goods Forum and Proforest.” said Louise Herring, Director of AIM-Progress.
“The outcome of our partnership will contribute through concrete implementation tools that help businesses make human rights and environmental due diligence a no-brainer for companies,” said Didier Bergeret, Director Sustainability of The Consumer Goods Forum. “This collaboration is the start of a longer learning journey where we hope the tool can inspire more companies to embark on a journey to embed human rights and environmental due diligence.”
“Companies gearing up for the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive and other reporting requirements need tools to engage with their suppliers on human rights and environmental due diligence. FLA authored this HREDD tool based on our robust standards and years of experience working with companies, suppliers, civil society organizations, and universities. Applicable across industries, this tool will help companies accurately assess their systems, while avoiding self-assessment and reporting fatigue,” said Richa Mittal, Executive Vice President and Chief Innovation Officer at FLA.
“We are delighted to be able to share the experience of such a strong business collaboration to develop the HREDD assessment tool,” commented Emanuela Ranieri-Svendsen, Deputy Director – Human Rights at Proforest. “It has been an important part of our ongoing work to promote HREDD good practice in the supply chain with meaningful supplier engagement to address human rights and environmental risks and impacts. We are keen to maximize opportunities for this tool to meaningfully contribute as part of a smart mix of measures.”
The current Converged HREDD Assessment Tool emerged after three years through collaborative development, pilot testing, and stakeholder feedback from AIM-Progress, CGF, FLA, Nestlé and Proforest.
The collaborators have made the tool open-source, aiming for it to become common industry best practice for how to assess HREDD readiness. It is available to download online here.
Please note, the tool is available as a working version and licensed under Creative Commons. Any organization sharing the tool and guidance document should acknowledge the contributions of the developing organizations.
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AIM-Progress is a global initiative of leading Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) manufacturers and suppliers joining forces to drive positive change in their supply chains and promote responsible sourcing practices and sustainable production systems. AIM-Progress works in a pre-competitive environment with more than 50 member companies from a diverse set of brands and suppliers linked through the commonality of their supply chains. Its mission is to positively impact people’s lives and ensure respect for human rights, while delivering value to members and their supply chains. This is done across four areas: our human rights priorities and respective working groups, our two regional hubs, our mutual recognition work to create synergies in approaches, and our capability building work stream to equip the members and their suppliers with knowledge and ability to execute strong responsible sourcing programmes.
For more information please visit: www.aim-progress.com
The Consumer Goods Forum brings consumer goods retailers and manufacturers together globally. CEO-led, it helps the world’s retailers and consumer goods manufacturers to collaborate, alongside other key stakeholders, to secure consumer trust and drive positive change, including greater efficiency. With global reach, CEO leadership and focus on retailer-manufacturer collaboration, CGF are in a unique position to drive positive change and help address key challenges impacting the industry, including environmental and social sustainability, health, food safety and product data accuracy. They do so for the benefit of both people and the planet, as well as our businesses, ensuring our vision – better lives through better business.
For more information, please visit: www.theconsumergoodsforum.com
The Fair Labor Association promotes human rights at work. We are an international network of companies, universities, and civil society organisations collaborating to ensure that millions of people working at the world’s factories and farms are paid fairly and protected from risks to their health, safety, and well-being.
Learn more at www.fairlabor.org
Proforest is a global mission-driven organisation, focused on the production base and supply chains of agricultural and forestry commodities including soy, sugar, rubber, palm oil, cocoa, coconut, beef and timber. We support companies with direct action to tackle environmental and social risks throughout a supply chain. We also work with governments, companies, and collaborative organisations, in order to address systemic issues beyond the supply chain, within a landscape or a sector, to deliver positive outcomes at scale for people, nature and climate.
We can be found at: Home – Proforest
FLA CONTACT:
Stacy Hope
communications@fairlabor.org