International Sustainable Purchasing Charter 2015
Nourish & Flourish The mission of our Company has always been to develop, produce and sell products that offer health and naturality, with an environmentally sustainable approach. This mission is also a commitment towards our consumers, our customers, our teams, our shareholders, our suppliers and other stakeholders. This is the very basis of our social responsibility policy. In the context of these new economic, social and environmental challenges, Nutrition & Santé accepts this responsibility to promote sustainable growth. To make our commitment strong and effective, it has to be shared internally with our teams and externally with our suppliers. The purpose of this sustainable purchasing charter is to demonstrate our commitment towards the environment, human rights, fair operating practices and consumer issues, and to clarify our requirements on these points for our suppliers. At Nutrition & Santé, we are committed to the principles of sustainable development and we seek, wherever possible, to do business with partners who have already made such a commitment or who are willing to take steps in that direction. This approach represents a long-term commitment, and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is now a selection criterion as important as quality, services and costs. The Nutrition & Santé team will be very mindful of compliance with this charter and we can help our suppliers to build an action plan to improve a shared contribution to compliance with this commitment. 2
This charter is based on Nutrition & Santé s mission and values as outlined in the «Vision 2015» strategic corporate project. Our mission : «Nutrition & Santé develops, produces and sells natural, healthy, branded food products.» Our Values : Care and respect for people Pioneer Responsible Commitment and hard-work Simple and open 3
Nutrition & Santé commitments > www.nutritionetsante.com/en/our-commitments To contribute to the economic development of our regions : We are producers and we have chosen to develop our industrial activities in rural areas, close to raw material supply sources. To reduce our environmental impact : ISO 14001 certification of our production plants Waste sorting management Water and energy consumption decrease Implementation of an eco-design policy. To give the priority to agricultural and local supply organization : We have implemented the first European sustainable supply organization with GMO-free soya, grown in the south west of France. We have developed sustainable supply organization for CRC (Sustainable cultivating method) wheat flour. The major part of our raw materials is supplied from Europe. 4
Food safety : We are committed to offering consumers food products that are safe, compliant and high quality. We have adopted policies and procedures to ensure the application of health and safety regulations. All our plants are working with a high level of quality management. We apply the standards and principles of Codex Alimentarius and we implement the Hazard Analysis of Critical Control Points (HACCP) approach. Improve the quality of working life : We regularly hire new employees. We respect generation and gender balance. We are committed to health and work safety management with an investment of over 3 M a year. Leader on the dietetic, organic and vegetal food markets : We have been innovating since our creation with currently 150 new products launched each year. Around 20% of our turnover comes from organic products. We are committed to fighting food waste, we regularly make significant food donations to several NGOs We are committed to a social partnership in order develop organic soya production and help to produce tofu in Burkina Faso with the «Tofu for Africa» operation. 5
Shared fundamental social and human rights principles The principles outlined below refer to International Labour norms, defined by the International Labour Organization. These principles are upheld by Nutrition & Santé and must be upheld by our suppliers too, as well as all along the supply chain. Child Labour The company does not resort to labour of children under the age of 15. Where the Law stipulates a higher age under which work is prohibited or where the compulsory school completion age is above the age of 15, the latter is applied. Educational programs (worktraining programs) are not included in this prohibition. Forced Labour The company does not resort to forced or compulsory labour, i.e. any work or service required from a person under the threat of any punishment or to which the person did not give his or her consent. Non-discrimination In accordance with national legislation, the company shall refrain from any discriminatory practice. This includes any distinction, exclusion or preference which may reduce or jeopardize equal opportunity and treatment. This can be based on race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, political opinion, age, nationality, family responsibilities or other considerations. Freedom of organization and right to collective bargaining The company admits and respects the freedom of association of workers, who can freely choose their representatives. The company also admits the right to collective bargaining and ensures that staff representatives are not subject to discrimination of any kind. Health and Safety at work The company ensures that the workstation and its environment do not adversely affect the physical integrity and health of the employee. Reducing the causes of accidents and improving working conditions are subject to tightly monitored actions. Sanitary facilities, refectories and accommodation provided by the company are constructed and maintained in accordance with standards prescribed by the laws in force in the country. The company must at least provide drinking water, clean and sufficient toilets, adequate ventilation, emergency exits, workplaces with proper lighting and easy access to medical care. Working time The company should ensure that national Laws concerning working time are applied, including overtime. Employees have at least one day off per week, except in exceptional circumstances and for a limited period. Salary The company ensures that no wage is below the legal minimum set by the country. Every employee receives a pay slip. Employees are appropriately compensated, in accordance with the prevailing wages in the country. Overtime is always paid at a rate higher than the normal hourly rate. Group Social Indicators The company is committed to implementing the most significant annual social indicators, in order to measure progress made on various topics under social policy. These indicators can consider at least the number of employees and employment in general, social dialogue, safety at work, salaries and training. 6
Nutrition & Santé commitment to suppliers Fair dealings with suppliers We treat our suppliers with honesty and respect. Our purchasing activities are conducted in accordance with highest ethical and professional standards, as set out in the Otsuka Group Global Code of Business Ethics. Our business relationship with our suppliers will be transparent and balanced concerning prices, costs, payment terms and fulfilment of agreements. Impartial Selection Supplier selection is based on objective criteria such as technical specifications, quality, services, prices, environmental and social impact. Nutrition & Santé teams do not accept any gift, entertainment or benefit from an individual or organization doing business with the company. Staff members must preserve their freedom of decision, avoiding any conflict of interest situations. They do not accept or propose any payment that may take them away from the normal continuity of business. Confidentiality and Intellectual property rights We make the commitment to respect confidential information on the economic and financial situation of our suppliers, and on trade and technical information provided by them. We also make the commitment to respect the property rights of our suppliers. Transparency & Communication Nutrition & Santé makes the commitment to provide as much information as possible on its procurement planning in order to give suppliers a clear view of its needs. We also make the commitment, referring to our sustainable supply chain development project, to provide feedback to our suppliers in their sustainable development performances and their opportunities to improve. Refusal of economic dependence We do our best to avoid and limit any economic dependence between Nutrition & Santé and its suppliers that may be detrimental to one of the two parties. Relation with the local economy We include smaller sized and local suppliers in our procurement processes wherever possible, in order to support and promote the development of the local economy. Health and Safety We will apply the same health & safety rules to all contractors coming to our sites as the ones applied to our employees. Food Safety We make the commitment to draw up clear, easily understandable specifications for raw materials, packaging and services concerned by food safety. We will communicate and update the list and information concerning staff members in charge of withdrawal and recall of products. 7
Supplier commitment to Nutrition & Santé Ethics and business management Fair operating practices Suppliers apply the highest standards of business and personal ethics and follow all applicable laws and regulations. They establish preventive actions to avoid anti-competitive practices or behavior. They are committed to fighting any kind of corruption, extortion or fraud. Suppliers shall not offer any benefits to Nutrition & Santé employees in order to facilitate business with Nutrition & Santé. Confidentiality and Intellectual property rights Suppliers are also duty-bound to respect the confidentiality of the information they receive from Nutrition & Santé. The information provided in connection with the activities must be accurate and reliable. They must undertake to respect intellectual property rights. Suppliers must have Nutrition & Santé s agreement to communicate about their business with Nutrition & Santé and to use its brands, image or action in their own communication. Transparency and Accountability Suppliers are committed to transparency and accountability. 8
Environment Nutrition & Santé is committed to identifying and reducing the environmental impact of its activities and products. It is with this same purpose that we want to promote the environmental performance of our suppliers, transporters and key service providers. Regulations Suppliers make the commitment to comply with environmental regulations in the countries where raw materials, products and services are produced and must keep up-to-date records and agreements as required. Farming, agricultural practices and processes Suppliers shall promote the development of agriculture & environment-friendly technologies as well as the welfare of animals. They must select only non-gmo ingredients and give priority to clean sourcing and less refined raw materials as much as possible (close to nature with minimum treatments and industrial transformations). The origin of ingredients / products Suppliers should select goods that are produced as close as possible to their manufacturing sites to limit the impact of transport. For the same level of quality, costs and CSR criteria, suppliers should give the priority to regional products, then national, and finally to European origins. Environment Management Suppliers make the commitment to develop and continuously improve an environmental management system that minimizes their impact on the environment. They shall handle and limit : water and energy consumption for a sustainable use of resources the use of non-eco-friendly products (chemicals, hazardous products ) CO₂ emissions (from manufacturing, transport, distribution, internal fleet ) Suppliers are committed to manage waste and discharges, promote recycling They implement action plans to limit environmental impacts of their activities and promote biodiversity. They develop measurable indicators to steer their environmental system management. This process could be implemented with ISO 14001 certification, Emas, ISO 26000 evaluation, eco-design practices.. 9
Environmental Risks Management Suppliers undertake to identify environmental risks, to take necessary measures to decrease or eliminate them and to report to Nutrition & Santé any environmental accident or incident that has generated pollution. Suppliers should analyse : Industrial risks, environmental impacts, discharges Procedures (supply, storage and use of environmentally hazardous products) Tests of emergency situations Mastered processes Environmental surveys. Suppliers should sign an environmental insurance. Value Analysis Suppliers should be a source of proposals and innovations in order to improve the sustainability of their offer. They should be ready to work on creative research consisting of a complete product diagnosis whose objective is to optimize sustainable quality by finding new concepts, solutions, technologies... Food Safety Suppliers make the commitment: to comply with local and European regulations in force regarding safety of food products; to implement control measures concerning safety of food products, in relation to food product safety management processes (i.e.: ISO 22000 standard, IFS, BRC...); to train every employee in food product safety; to provide N&S with all the certificates and all the supporting documents whenever there is a change regarding: declaration of compliance, migration absence, allergens, GMO, or any other document demonstrating food product safety guarantees; to permanently define and update withdrawal/recall procedures; to implement a management system for deliberate infections of food products, managed by a Food Defence team and Manager, as well as a risk analysis to define and secure critical zones; to immediately announce any case of contamination of manufactured and/or supplied products that may jeopardize the safety and health of consumers. Supplier assessment and continuous improvement The Corporate Social Responsibility must aim for a permanent improvement of processes and of the results obtained. That is why Nutrition & Santé intends to implement a corporate social responsibility survey with its suppliers, in order to assess their ability to meet the commitments included in this charter and to plan appropriate progress actions. The suppliers are assessed on the following criteria, in particular: quality, service, price but also on the corporate social responsibility criteria that are defined in this charter. 10
International Sustainable Purchasing Charter Commitment By signing this charter, Nutrition & Santé and the suppliers make commitment to respect its content and promote it to all their stakeholders Date : For the General Management : For the Supplier : (Name, signature and commercial stamp) I confirm having read the content of the Charter - 2015 11