Sustainable Procurement: How to Source Materials Ethically

How are products sourced ethically and how can sourcing and fair trade initiatives help businesses make their procurement activities more sustainable?

Each player must accept the cards that life deals him or her. But once in hand one must decide how to play the cards in order to win the game.

_{(Voltaire, French philosopher 1694-1778)}

Defining the concept of ethical sourcing of products

…the process of ensuring the products being sourced are obtained in a responsible and sustainable way, that the workers involved in making them are safe and treated fairly and that environmental and social impacts are taken into consideration during the sourcing process.

…respect international standards against criminal conduct and human rights abuses and respond to these issues immediately if identified.

_{(CIPS 2009)}

Sourcing locally

…sourcing, purchasing or procurement of food, ingredients and other consumable products from within a specific radius from where they will be used, or from a given geographical area.

_{(CfD 2016)}

…definitions related to geographic distance between production and sales vary by regions, companies, consumers, and local food markets. _{(USDA 2010)}

Fair trade schemes

The 10 principles of fair trade

Fairtrade mark

The core FAIRTRADE Mark

The FAIRTRADE Sourced Ingredients Mark

Your task

Look for the WFTO label to identify three products from verified fair trade businesses. Select one of them and explain what actions the business has undertaken to audit itself and its suppliers against the 10 principles of fair trade.

References

_{CfD (2016) ‘Sourcing Locally’.Chefs for Development available from https://chefs4dev.org/index.php/sourcing-locally/ [8 July 2019]}

_{CIPS (2009) ‘Sustainable Procurement Knowledge Summary’. CIPS Knowledge Works [online]. UK Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply. available from https://www.cips.org/en-GB/knowledge/procurement-topics-and-skills/sustainability/sustainable-and-ethical-procurement/sustainable-procurement/ [8 July 2019]}

_{Crone, M. (2002) ‘Local Sourcing by Multinational Enterprise Plants: Evidence from the UK Regions and the Implications for Policy’. Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy 20 (1), 131-149}

_{Fairtrade UK (2019) ‘Fairtrade and Sustainability Standard of Living: Income and Food Security, Reduced Risk and Vulnerability’. London: Fairtrade Foundation}

_{Johannessen, S., and Wilhite, H. (2010) ‘Who Really Benefits from Fairtrade? An Analysis of Value Distribution in Fairtrade Coffee’. Globalizations 7 (4), 525-544}

_{Knowledge Works (n.d.) ‘Sustainable Procurement’. Knowledge Works [online]. UK Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply. available from https://www.cips.org/en/knowledge/procurement-topics-and-skills/sustainability/sustainable-and-ethical-procurement/sustainable-procurement/ [8 July 2019] You will need to register with the CIPS to view the document}

_{Linton, A. (2008) ‘A Niche for Sustainability? Fair Labor and Environmentally Sound Practices in the Specialty Coffee Industry’. Globalizations 5 (2), 231-245}

_{Meehan, J., and Bryde, D. (2011) ‘Sustainable Procurement Practice’. Business Strategy and the Environment 20 (2), 94-106}

_{USDA (2010) ‘Local Food Systems: Concepts, Impacts, and Issues (ERR-97)’. Economic Research Service/United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) [online]. available from https://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/pub-details/?pubid=46395 [8 July 2019]}

_{WFTO (2017) ‘10 Principles of Fair Trade’ [online]. available from https://wfto.com/fair-trade/10-principles-fair-trade [8 July 2019]}