To better understand what is working and what is not, Valuing Respect analyzed metrics and human rights reporting currently being used by companies and available to investors across three sectors. This paper summarizes our findings in the Food and Beverage sector.

The research was conducted from mid-2018 to early 2019. It has informed the direction and focus of the Valuing Respect project.


A Quick Look at our Findings

After reviewing fourteen food and beverage companies in the database, the analysis revealed that activities were the most frequently reported type of indicator with companies often disclosing information about training programs, audits and assessments. Additionally, the reports disclosed a fair amount of information about the outputs of activities (e.g., plans for further investigations, resolutions and initiatives). A lot of the information provided was focused on road safety and vehicle accidents. No data was provided on outcomes for business.

The full breakdown can be seen below:

Observations

  1. A small number of companies reported data on the resources invested (inputs) into human rights issues. This generally focused on designated teams, committees and personnel.
  2. Nearly every company disclosed information related to audits and assessments, focusing on both internal audits and third-party audits. Reporting often included information about the audits, such as where the audits were located, who was audited, what operation was audited and the audits’ length.
  3. Data about training focuses on the number of employees trained, the number of hours of training and the training topics addressed.
  4. For human rights issues that have been a spotlight focus for the sector such as child labor and warehouse and road safety, evidence provided is more spread across the full pathway of indicators. This tends to happen when companies are reporting on specific examples in specific locations or operations.
  5. Some data is provided about grievance mechanisms and complaints received. Only one reviewed company provided information on output.

For the detailed explanation of each observation please download the full document below.

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