Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence

The behaviour of companies will have a substantial impact on our ability to achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Extreme poverty and human rights violations still prevail in many global supply chains and to disrupt this trend, it is essential that companies are held accountable for their conduct.

To tackle this challenge, the European Union introduced the world’s first binding due diligence legislation - the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) - in July 2024, which establishes an obligation for large companies to identify and address adverse human rights and environmental impacts. The CSDDD is groundbreaking legislation, and following the victory of the legislation being enacted, it is now the time to ensure clear implementation guidelines and appropriate accompanying measures to realise the full potential of the law.

Our View

The Fair Trade Advocacy Office (FTAO) welcomes the introduction of the CSDDD and is working to ensure that it is implemented in a way that tangibly improves rights holders' lives. Throughout the negotiation process and to date, we advocate for smallholder-farmer-inclusive implementation, and for co-designing appropriate measures to help address the challenges and maximise the impact of this legislation within and beyond European borders.

We believe sustainable corporate governance legislation should address the root causes of human rights violations and lead to a real shift in companies’ practices. Therefore, emphasis in implementation should therefore be placed on addressing harmful purchasing practices. We also stand firmly that due diligence legislation must bring about positive change on the ground for small farmers and workers, and therefore strongly advocate for the right to living income to be translated into reality.