Comments for CorporateResponsibility.Net

Comment on Have a break – have an ethical Kit Kat by Mike Brady

Mike Brady — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 14:43:13 +0000

Nestlé has been taken to court in the US for failing to act on a 2001 agreement to end child slavery in its cocoa supply chain and in the past has boycotted a meeting by Senator Horkins (co-sponsor of the Horkins-Engel Protocol in the US) called to examine lack of progress. There are 11 million people dependent on cocoa farming in West Africa, many of them dependent on Nestlé. The KitKat products involved in this scheme will benefit only 6,000 of them. There is a danger that the improved conditions for the 6,000 farmers will divert attention from the many others outside the scheme, and be used deliberately to this end by Nestlé.

Stop the Traffik, founded by Steve Chalke, the United Nations Special Advisor on Community Action Against Human Trafficking, said in response to the announcement that ‘two finger’ Kit Kats and all of Nestlé’s other chocolate products ““will continue to exploit the chocolate slaves of the Ivory Coast from where Nestlé source most of their cocoa”.” See:
http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/node/10757

This is a similar situation to its Fairtrade coffee, which involves just 0.1% of the coffee farmers dependent on it, but is used to suggest it is making a huge difference, providing cover for continued unethical practices.

In addition, Nestlé is the most boycotted company in the UK and one of the four most boycotted companies on the planet according to GMIPoll because of the way it pushes its breastmilk substitutes. Nestlé systematically breaches the baby milk marketing standards adopted by the World Health Assembly, undermines breastfeeding and contributes to the unnecessary death and suffering of babies. According to UNICEF, 1.5 million babies die around the world every year because they are not breastfed. Even Nestlé’s Global Public Affairs Manager, Dr. Gayle Crozier Willi, admitted in 2007 that Nestlé is ‘widely boycotted’.

Fairtrade KitKat will be added to the boycott list. The boycot has forced some changes in Nestlé marketing practices and policies, but the company, the market leader, refuses to make all necessary changes and is still the worst of the baby food companies. At the present time it is being targeted for practices that include claiming its infant formula ‘protects’ babies – it does not, babies fed on it are more likely to become sick than breastfed babies and in conditions of poverty, they are more likely to die.

Its Fairtrade product should be seen in this context.

Please see my blogs on this topic, which include a quote from me:
http://boycottnestle.blogspot.com/2009/12/nestle-fairtrade-two-fingers.html

Comment on Ethics alone will not prevent financial crises by l

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 08:47:58 +0000

I fully enjoyed reading your post. I have bookmarked your blog so I can read future posts. Best regards, Jeremiah Bruer @ L

Comment on Opinion: How Serious Are Institutional Investors Over Carbon Disclosure? by Paul Dickinson

Paul Dickinson — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 09:39:41 +0000

Thanks for this. Why not let me give you a call sometime. It would be good to chat. Please email me your phone number.
Best wishes
Paul Dickinson

Comment on Consumers Buying Sustainable Despite Battered Economy – Survey by Aaron Fu

Aaron Fu — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 11:16:59 +0000

I wish I could use this studies like this to push management to seriously consider introducing sustainable options into our products…

But I’m responsible for Eastern Europe where the firm belief is that consumers just don’t care enough to see a Sustainability option as significant added value. Gah.

Comment on 2009 list of Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World by At Davos: Coca Cola on Top Sustainable Corporations List « Evolving Choice

At Davos: Coca Cola on Top Sustainable Corporations List « Evolving Choice — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 23:09:59 +0000

[...] More on the Top 100 List at: Environmental Leader, Social Funds, GreenBiz, CorporateResponsibility.net [...]

Comment on 2009 list of Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World by Aaron Fu

Aaron Fu — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 23:07:49 +0000

Was a fantastic move to release the list at Davos (much more publicity and cred!).. was really surprised to see Coca Cola on the list though, wasn’t too long ago that they had an absolutely horrible reputation everywhere for sustainability..

Blogged at EvolvingChoice: http://tinyurl.com/bs5ccw

Comment on What Green Power Wants From Obama by prahladji

prahladji — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 12:22:59 +0000

It is very necessary for powering a greener tomorrow.

Comment on Ecoflation, a new worry, could hit consumer goods by Karl Ramjohn

Karl Ramjohn — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 19:29:41 +0000

I don’t know why they need to coin a new phrase — “ecoflation” — for this.

It would seem better to simply use the term inflation as before. While obviously not the intention, calling this ecoflation can potentially create the perception that it is caused by increased concerns for environment and sustainability

Comment on Hybrids Car Sales To Rise Despite Economy – Report by Electric vehicles all the buzz at LA auto show - Greener People

Electric vehicles all the buzz at LA auto show - Greener People — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 05:57:40 +0000

[...] LOS ANGELES: Despite plunging gas prices, the auto industry’s move to greener and more fuel-efficient technology appears to be gaining momentum with a growing number of manufacturers betting on a market for cars, trucks and crossovers running entirely on battery power. The transformation is being driven home at the Los Angeles Auto Show which runs until the end of the week and showcases a new focus on "electrification," the industry buzzword for supplementing or replacing the internal combustion engine with electric alternatives. "The end-game is zero emissions," declared Carlos Ghosn, the CEO of Renault/Nissan alliance, during his keynote address last week. The French-Japanese group is developing an assortment of electric vehicles from minicars to 4×4s in collaboration with a number of countries – Israel, Denmark and Portugal and the United States. The ambition is to bring the cars to the mass market by 2012 and Ghosn has said Nissan’s electric vehicle program is one of the few places the company won’t cut as it struggles with the worsening global slump in car sales. The primarily problem remains the battery — as it did when Henry Ford tried to develop a competitive electric vehicle with the help of his old friend Thomas Alva Edison a century ago. The chemical storage devices provide limited range and long charging cycles, add lots of weight — and cost a lot. But industry leaders are hoping that the latest generation of batteries — especially variations of the lithium-ion technology used in modern cell phones and laptop computers — will solve such problems. Read Full Article: Electric vehicles all the buzz at LA auto show | Developmental Issues-Earth-The Times of India Related: Hybrids Car Sales To Rise Despite Economy – Report | CorporateResponsibility.Net [...]

Comment on UK: Firms urged to re-think recycling approach as prices plummet by Karl Ramjohn

Karl Ramjohn — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 06:52:37 +0000

UK paper recycling sector “hit by falling exports”

The press release from the Confederation of Paper Industries (CPI), November 10, 2008 —> http://www.paper.org.uk/news/2008/1011exportexodus.pdf

Also, “Recovered materials prices – WRAP’s view and planned next steps”
—> http://www.wrap.org.uk/wrap_corporate/recovered_materials.html