Human rights policy

Who it applies to

This policy applies to Bounty Industries, its staff and the agents who act for it, and we expect the cooperatives, aggregators, processors, farms and transport providers we buy from or work with to follow it too.

Standards we follow

We base this policy on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the OECD-FAO Guidance for Responsible Agricultural Supply Chains.

We follow Nigerian law and the law of the countries we trade with, and where the law and these standards differ we follow the stricter one.

Child labor

We do not accept child labor in our own work or in the supply of any lot we sell, and we follow ILO Conventions 138 (minimum age) and 182 (worst forms of child labor).

• No one under 18 does hazardous work, such as using machetes, handling agrochemicals, carrying heavy loads or running machinery.
• A child may help on the family's own farm only if the task is light, a parent or guardian supervises it, it happens outside school hours and it does not stop the child from going to school.
• If we find child labor, we require the supplier to end it and to refer the family to local education or social services, and we do not simply stop buying and leave the child without support.

Forced labor and trafficking

We do not accept forced, bonded, prison or trafficked labor (ILO Conventions 29 and 105). In our supply:

• Workers are free to leave a job.
• No one holds a worker's identity documents, wages or tools as security.
• No worker pays a recruitment fee, and no debt is used to tie someone to a job.

Pay and working hours

Everyone who works on our lots is paid at least the legal minimum wage, in full and on time, and works within the hours the law sets. We do not accept unlawful deductions from pay, and we pay our own suppliers on the terms agreed in writing.

Freedom of association

Workers and farmers can form or join organizations of their choice, including cooperatives and unions, and can bargain collectively (ILO Conventions 87 and 98), and we do not penalize anyone for doing so.

Discrimination, harassment and violence

We do not accept discrimination based on gender, ethnicity, religion, age, disability or any other personal characteristic (ILO Conventions 100 and 111), and we do not accept harassment or violence at work, including sexual harassment.

Women and men have equal access to our market and equal pay for equal work.

Health and safety

We expect suppliers to provide a safe workplace, which includes protective equipment where work involves agrochemicals, machinery or heavy loads, chemicals stored away from food and living areas, and clean water and first aid at work sites.

Land and communities

We do not buy from land taken without the free, prior and informed consent of the people who hold legal or customary rights to it, we respect customary land tenure, and we expect suppliers to settle land disputes through legal and community processes, never by force.

When a supplier breaks this policy

Child labor, forced labor and unsafe work are the main risks we look for in cashew, cocoa and sesame supply, and when a supplier breaks this policy we ask it to fix the problem within a set time, stop buying from it while the problem continues and end the relationship if it does not fix the problem. If a buyer's lot is affected, we tell the buyer.

Where a person has been harmed, we work with the supplier to put it right, for example by repaying unpaid wages or returning a child to school.

Reporting a concern

Anyone can report a human rights concern about Bounty or any of its suppliers, including workers, farmers, community members, buyers and our own staff, by emailing contact@bounty.africa or calling +31 6 27361966 or +234 703 212 7274, and nobody has to give their name.

We acknowledge every report within 5 business days. Someone who is not involved in the matter looks into it, and we tell the person who reported it what we found and what we did, unless they asked to stay anonymous and we cannot reach them.

We keep the identity of the person reporting confidential as far as the law allows, and we do not retaliate against anyone who reports in good faith or allow anyone else to.

Responsibility and review

The management of Bounty Industries is responsible for this policy, and we review it once a year and after any serious case.