CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

As an agricultural commodity trader, we are dependent upon nature and the land. To us, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is much more than just a programme. It is integral to who we are and how we do business. It is inherent in our culture and values, ingrained in our commercial strategy and daily operations, and championed in every part of our organisation across the globe.

Our statements of intent

1. We will help our customers achieve their sustainability goals by finding innovative and sustainable solutions in the value chain
2. We will encourage good employment practices and sustainability
3. We will make better use of scarce resources, be more sustainable and reduce our footprint on the environment
4. We consider the following to be unacceptable and have no place in our business:

• wasting energy and raw materials
• poor labour standards
• deforestation 
• human rights violations

Corporate Social Responsibility Report 2016-18

Corporate Social Responsibility Report 2014-16

Governance

Our shared commitment to responsible growth rests with every ED&F Man employee. Ultimate accountability lies with the Executive Chairman, while the CSR Steering Committee acts as custodian for all CSR matters. Strong governance, through clearly defined roles and responsibilities, coupled with a framework for discussion and action, are essential to deliver our CR programme.

Our standards and policies

We have set ourselves meaningful standards to manage our environmental impact, ensure safe workplaces and product quality, and encourage ethical behaviour. These are defined in our global Standards of Business Conduct, which is reinforced by a number of specific policies and guidance supplements.

Standards of Business Conduct
CSR Policy
Supplier Code of Conduct
Whistleblowing Policy
Group Tax Strategy
Modern Slavery Act statement 2015/16
Modern Slavery Act statement 2016/17
Modern Slavery Act statement 2017/18
Gender Pay Gap Report – 2017
Gender Pay Gap Report – 2018
Gender Pay Gap Report – 2019

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Our success depends on attracting the most talented staff and keeping them safe, productive and happy.

We provide a supportive work environment. Our offices and industrial sites meet health and safety requirements and we conduct regular training to give our staff the confidence to work safely.

Labour practices

We support and respect the principles of the ILO Declaration of Philadelphia that labour is not a commodity. 

We do not discriminate in personnel practices, never use child or forced labour and observe all rights of our employees. We expect the same from our suppliers and service providers.

Human rights

We support human rights for employees and local communities who may be affected by our business activities. 

We fight against child and forced labour, and will uphold all national laws and human rights.

We follow principles including:

• the right for everyone to earn a living by freely chosen work without being subject to forced, bonded or compulsory labour, or trafficking 
• the right to just, safe and favourable conditions of work
• freedom of association
• the right of collective bargaining

Employees

We respect employees’ privacy and treat each other with dignity and respect. 

We provide safe and healthy working conditions, an atmosphere of open communication and a work environment free from discrimination and harassment.

Health and safety

We aim for a workplace that is free from known safety and health hazards. Avoiding physical harm to anyone working on our sites is paramount. It’s that simple.

Providing safe products is a big responsibility – and we take this very seriously.

We have rigorous safety and quality control processes, not just in our own section of the supply chain – we expect our suppliers to meet our standards and code of conduct, and provide safe and fair working practices.

Products

Our quality and food safety policy complies with local and international feed and food laws and industry standards.

This guarantees that our products are developed, produced, traded, transported, stored, distributed and delivered in a controlled and hygienic way, with the safety and health of our customers and consumers as our priority.

Suppliers

We buy our products and services on the basis of merit. We consider our suppliers as extensions of our business, so we expect them to share similar commitments to quality and safety.

We deal fairly with our suppliers and partners, and seek long-lasting business relationships based on mutual trust and respect.

We treat suppliers fairly and without discrimination and hold them accountable to support our Standards of Business Conduct.

Customers and consumers

We deal lawfully and ethically with our customers and offer high-quality, competitive prices and execute business accurately and reliably. 

Fair operating practices

The cornerstone of our CSR programme and code of conduct are ethical, sustainable business practices. Robust corporate governance is a critical element of our culture.

Our business is all about building relationships, not just with customers and suppliers but also with our neighbours. We can only achieve a sustainable supply chain if we play a responsible role as a member of the communities in which we operate. 

We are committed to:

• fighting forced and child labour 
• contributing to the wellbeing and economic prosperity of our local communities
• upholding high labour standards 
• upholding local, national and international laws 
• encouraging employee education 
• supporting improvements to employee wellbeing

Charitable activities

We support local projects and encourage our employees to volunteer on projects that improve access to education, health, culture and emergency aid. Whether building schools, funding healthcare facilities, providing support and education to encourage sustainable farming or improving local community housing, contributing to society is a mutual benefit. 

Our role as a sustainable business

As a trader of sugar, coffee and liquid products we're committed to feed and food safety – and to sourcing our products responsibly in compliance with all laws and regulations of the countries where we operate.

We aim to grow the quantity of sustainably certified products we trade and meet the increasing demand for sustainably sourced products.

We aim to reduce our environmental impact by minimising our global resource use and waste. 

Using energy and water 

We will use less energy, fuel and water in our production facilities.

Managing waste 

Our assets do not generate any waste categorised as 'hazardous', however we monitor – and work to reduce – other types of waste as a part of our sustainability reporting.

Our carbon footprint

To make constant improvements we track and analyse our energy use and CO₂ emissions. We publish our carbon footprint data each year.

Preventing and controlling pollution 

To prevent or alleviate pollution we continuously improve maintenance, training, inventory control and housekeeping – and change product designs, substitute raw materials, and modify equipment to achieve reductions.