The California Transparency in Supply Chains Act (SB 657) (https://oag.ca.gov/SB657) of 2010 requires certain retailers and manufacturers doing business in California to disclose their efforts to eradicate slavery and human trafficking from their supply chain in five key areas:
1. Engage in verification of product supply chains to evaluate and address risks of human trafficking and slavery
2. Conduct audits of suppliers to evaluate supplier compliance with company standards for trafficking and slavery in supply chains
3. Require direct suppliers to certify that materials incorporated into the product comply with the laws regarding slavery and human trafficking of the country or countries in which they are doing business
4. Maintain internal accountability standards and procedures for employees or contractors failing to meet company standards regarding slavery and trafficking
5. Provide company employees and management, who have direct responsibility for supply chain management, training on human trafficking and slavery, particularly with respect to mitigating risks within the supply chains of products
Source: State of California Department of Justice (https://oag.ca.gov/SB657)
Simple Mills does not currently have a formal policy in place to engage in any of the listed measures above and does not conduct verification or auditing specifically targeted to human trafficking and slavery in our supply chain.
Through our standard quality assurance processes and documentation requirements, all direct suppliers are asked whether their facilities are compliant with existing local and federal laws regarding slavery and human trafficking.
In addition, we have piloted a supplier engagement tool to increase transparency to farm-level practices throughout our supply chain. Through this tool, we gather data on agricultural production methods as well as related labor practices such as wages, working hours, and worker employment status.