Standards

We continually evaluate where our business activities and those of our partners can deliver meaningful social and environmental benefits.

Better Product

While the "better" story behind our products is an important aspect of our offering, we also deliver premium quality products. This high standard is critical in order for our suppliers to gain entry to market; as such we offer support to emerging business that helps them meet all EU, retail quality and management requirements.

Better Planet

Over and above ensuring that our activities are underpinned by legal compliance, we make sure that all environmental aspects are properly considered in project planning and that systems are in place for the efficient use of natural resources.

As a company operating out of Africa we are fully aware that our business activities and investments are vulnerable to global climate change. Climate change has grave implications for Africa in the social, environmental and economic spectrum. These relationships need careful consideration when implementing new projects. For example, water resources are becoming more stressed in many parts of Africa, and so this is an increasingly important area for project planning. The impact that our water requirements might have on catchments and other users also requires very careful assessment and management, and this is heightened by climate change.

It is important for us to be informed and to understand the implications of climate change as best we can, factoring scenarios into decision-making processes. We are also committed to better understanding the relationship of our activities to climate change, so that we can take actions to monitor, manage and improve performance where possible. Our Climate Change Policy commits us to action.

Better People

Social enhancement needs to go beyond just providing jobs. In order to better understand the pressing social issues that face employees and communities, we undertake a baseline study. Guided with the right information, we have a better idea of how we can positively affect people's lives.

Even the simplest initiatives can make a big difference. In many cases this might be as basic as providing access to existing social services - such as literacy classes or substance abuse counselling.

We subscribe to Ethical Trading Initiative principles and use the ILO and Ethical Trading Initiative compliance as a minimum guideline. Legal compliance is a must with respect to workers contracts, working conditions and wages.

We also believe that even small initiatives can make a difference, such as opening a bank account for workers who were previously un-bankable.