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Nestle on child labour allegations: it’s complicated

It took Nestle a little while to get back to us about SumOfUs.org‘s call to boycott the multinational over allegations its cocoa plantations in Ivory Coast have been implicated in child slavery.

In an email to Ecoholic columnist Adria Vasil Tuesday, November 8, Nestle Corporate Affairs Manager Cedric Focking Schneider addresses those allegations (sort of), as well as criticism the company has received in recent months over its water-taking operations in Ontario.

What follows is a slightly edited version of the company’s responses.

On the child slavery charges

Schneider writes that “100 per cent of our Canadian made chocolate (KitKat, Smarties, Aero, and Coffee Crisp) is made with sustainable cocoa.” And that Nestle is “committed to preventing and eliminating child labour in our supply chain, working with stakeholders to develop and implement meaningful solutions.” He then adds that “child labour in our cocoa supply chain is a complex issue and gathering reliable evidence about attitudes and perceptions, as well as whats happening on the ground is vital, but challenging.”

On the factory fire at a company packaging supplier in Bangladesh in which 34 people were killed in September

“We too were shocked and saddened by this terrible news. The factory supplies Nestle in Bangladesh, along with a number of other companies. It does not supply any materials for Nestles operations in other countries,” according to Scheider. “Prioritizing the health and safety of workers, and ensuring that fire prevention and emergency procedures are in place, are non-negotiable requirements for Nestles suppliers.”

The wrinkle: Schneider reveals that the company conducted an audit of the factory in 2011 and that it’s awaiting “further details from the authorities and others in Bangladesh on what caused this incident.”

On Nestles water-taking operations in Ontario

Schneider says the company “did not outbid Centre Wellington township,” for access to a well for its water bottling operations. The company has been quoted in other reports as saying it “had no idea” Wellington was bidding for the well.

Writes Schneider: “We recognize that the needs of local communities must come first. We have operated sustainably over the last 15 years in Aberfoyle and we share publicly our monitoring data that supports these withdrawals.”

Schneider adds in his email “Nestle has been recognized as a global leader in tackling climate change by the Carbon Disclosure Project as well as the 2016 Dow Jones Sustainability Index.”

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