Developed in response to growing awareness around human rights and labour standards within the global supply chain, the Standard provides a framework for the evaluation of an organisation’s management system which delivers against set principles for ethical trade and responsible sourcing.
The Standard aims to help suppliers demonstrate that the goods or services they sell are produced ethically – and that raw materials are sourced responsibly. Designed as a stand-alone audit or delivered in conjunction with other BRCGS Standards, it will also assist manufacturers; secondary processing sites and service providers in demonstrating legal compliance.
Ged Farmer, LRQA’s Technical Sustainability Manager, said: “Our qualified and experienced auditors are ready and able to deliver audits against this incredibly important Standard. We’re seeing a step change in consumer buying behaviour which is increasingly driven by ethical considerations so it’s more important than ever for businesses to be able to demonstrate they have identified, measured and mitigated ethical risk in their organisation’s supply chain.”
Mike Wilson, Global Head of Ethical Trade and Responsible Sourcing at BRCGS added: “Audits against BRCGS Standards are carried out by a global network of auditors from highly respected certification bodies such as LRQA. We have exceptionally high standards when it comes to the competence, qualifications and experience of our auditors and they are closely monitored which ensures the audit standards are stringently maintained.
“The BRCGS Ethical Trade and Responsible Sourcing Standard helps tackles a huge global problem by offering a comprehensive set of requirements which food companies can use to help them ensure they are providing a safe, healthy work environment and upholding workers’ right. It also helps businesses address consumer demands, protect shareholder value and company reputation. There are multiple benefits and I hope that businesses around the world will now look to work towards the requirements specified in either the stand-alone audit (Core Standard) or the bolt-on, additional module (Risk Assessment).”
The BRCGS Directory can be viewed here.