STATEMENT IN COMPLIANCE WITH CALIFORNIA TRANSPARENCY IN SUPPLY CHAINS ACT
The California Transparency in Supply Chains Act of 2010 (the “Act”) requires certain retailers and manufacturers doing business in California to provide information regarding their efforts to eliminate slavery and human trafficking in their supply chains. This statement is provided on behalf of Chobani, LLC and its affiliate entities (collectively, “Chobani”).
Chobani is committed to the highest standards for lawful, honest, and ethical conduct in all business dealings. This commitment is reflected in everything we do, from our purpose-driven business decisions, to our philanthropic efforts and the way we treat our employees and partners. Consistent with Chobani’s commitment to provide Better food for more people, Chobani is committed to insuring our products are produced and manufactured with ingredients and materials sourced from suppliers that are not engaged or otherwise involved in human trafficking and slavery.
Verification. Chobani purchases ingredients and packaging from suppliers located in the United States and in foreign countries. Chobani generally verifies its supply chains by doing business with suppliers that are well-established, reputable organizations that respect the legal requirements of the jurisdictions in which they operate. Our suppliers typically have formal business conduct or similar policies, which Chobani reviews to ensure that they are consistent with Chobani policies. Pursuant to our internal verification process, our ingredient suppliers and packaging suppliers are asked to confirm to us in writing that they have policies in place to assure that human trafficking and slavery do not exist in their respective organizations and supply chains.
Audits. Currently, all Chobani suppliers undergo a rigorous qualification process as managed by Chobani’s internal Supplier Quality Assurance team. Chobani conducts audits internally of all its suppliers to evaluate compliance with its quality and ethical standards. Chobani expects all suppliers to comply at all times with applicable laws and to engage in honest and ethical business conduct. Chobani will take immediate action if they find evidence that a supplier is engaging in any illegal activity, including slavery or human trafficking. In 2018, Chobani will require all Chobani suppliers to abide by the terms of its Supplier Code of Conduct as a way of ensuring standards are recognized and upheld.
Certifications. As discussed above, Chobani does business with reputable suppliers that to our knowledge are in compliance with the legal requirements of the jurisdictions where they operate and that typically have formal policies in effect to reinforce that their business activities will be conducted in a legal, honest, and ethical manner. Chobani’s current annual verification requires confirmation of compliance with laws and regulations of the country or countries in which a supplier does business, including those regarding slavery and human trafficking. Chobani requires acknowledgement of such requirements via its Supplier Quality Expectation Manual.
Accountability. Chobani follows, and requires all employees to follow, policies that demand lawful, honest, and ethical conduct in every aspect of business dealings. It has a Standards of Conduct Policy in its Employee Handbook that includes the requirement of all employees to comply with all laws, rules, and regulations of the United States and the states, counties, cities and other jurisdictions in which Chobani does business. All of our employees are required to comply with our company policies. Our commitment to use ingredients and materials sourced from suppliers not engaged or otherwise involved in human trafficking and slavery is no different. Accordingly, as with any alleged violation of company policy, we will investigate the issue and take the appropriate action up to and including termination.
Training. All employees with direct responsibility for supply chain quality and auditing are expected to adhere to the company’s strict ethical practices, especially as it relates to supply chain management. Those employees are trained to manage the audits of suppliers for compliance with our internal policies, as described above. Such employees are also trained with respect to mitigating risks within the supply chains of products. Our internal training programs that emphasize expectations and encourage best-practices continue to be developed.
We regularly assess our operational strategies to ensure we’re living up to our commitment of providing Better food for more people. We continue to improve upon current risk assessment processes and protocols, placing a particular focus on managing more high-risk ingredients and materials sourced domestically and abroad.