Modern Slavery & Human Trafficking Statement

Introduction

Modern slavery is a heinous and morally reprehensible act that deprives a person’s liberty and dignity for another person’s gain. It is a real problem for millions of people around the world, including many in developed countries, who are being kept and exploited in various forms of slavery. Every company is at risk of being involved in this crime through its own operations and its supply chain.

At Nim’s Fruit Limited, we have a zero-tolerance approach to modern slavery and are fully committed to preventing slavery and human trafficking in our operation and supply chain. We have taken concrete steps to tackle modern slavery, as outlined in our statement. This statement sets out the actions that we will take to understand all potential modern slavery risks related to our business, and to implement steps to prevent slavery and human trafficking during the financial year 2018/19.

Our business and supply chains

In 2012 Nimisha Raja pioneered the concept of air-dried fruit crisps, launching the first product to the UK market with her innovative brand Nim’s Fruit Crisps. As an entrepreneurial café owner and mum, she was frustrated with the lack of a genuinely healthy and tasty snacking alternatives and set out to create a product that not only she would enjoy, but her daughter would too.

She discovered that both children and adults enjoyed the texture of crisps as much as the flavour but was shocked by the lack of healthier options on the market. Nimisha developed her products first sourcing exceptional quality fruit and then perfecting the process of air-drying them for crispness and sweetness of flavour. Tapping into the demand for genuinely healthy lunchboxes and on-the-go and after school snacks which don’t compromise on taste, her crisps quickly grew in popularity, breathing new life into stale and stagnant snack aisles.

Passionate about British manufacturing, Nimisha took a step to improve the quality and consistency of her already award-winning products by setting up her own UK-based factory. The new site means the brand can ensure an exceptional level of quality and consistency of product, as well as being able to respond to customer demands and bespoke orders swiftly and to exacting specifications.

Nim’s is a unique range made from only the freshest produce with no additives or preservatives of any kind. With our unique air-drying process, we offer a healthy, tasty alternative to many of the fried, vacuum dried and baked bagged snacks on the market – the perfect healthy snack for those with busy lifestyles.

Every bag of thinly sliced fruit, which includes the skin, core and pips (except the pineapple flavour!) is high in fibre and vitamin C, as well as being fat and gluten free. This wholesome and natural product counts as one of your five a day and is less than 75 calories, making it the perfect snack for everyone, including vegans, vegetarians and coeliacs!

Our crisps are now stocked in over 1500 stores nationwide as well as several outlets internationally including Hong Kong, Israel, South Africa, Portugal and more.

We establish a relationship of trust and integrity with all our suppliers and distributors, which is built upon mutually beneficial factors. Our selection and on-boarding procedure includes due diligence of the supplier’s or distributor’s reputation, respect for the law, compliance with health, safety and environmental standards, and references.

We haven’t been made aware of any allegations of human trafficking/slavery activities against any of our suppliers, but if we were, then we would act immediately against the supplier and report it to the authorities.

Risk assessment

This year we will conduct a risk assessment of our supply chain by taking into account:  

  • The risk profile of individual countries based on the Global Slavery Index  
  • The business services rendered by the suppliers  
  • The presence of vulnerable demographic groups  
  • A news analysis and the insights of labour and human rights groups

This assessment will determine our response and the risk controls that we implement.

Policies

Nim’s Fruit Limited operates the following policies for identifying and preventing slavery and human trafficking in our operations:  

  • Whistleblowing Policy – we encourage all employees, customers and suppliers to report any suspicion of slavery or human trafficking without fear of retaliation. We provide a confidential helpline to protect the identity of the whistleblowers.  
  • Code of Conduct – our code encourages employees to do the right thing by clearly stating the actions and behaviour expected of them when representing the business. We strive to maintain the highest standards of employee conduct and ethical behaviour when operating abroad and managing our supply chain.  
  • Purchasing Code – we have updated our Purchasing Code and supplier contracts to make explicit reference to slavery and human trafficking.

Supplier due diligence

Nim’s Fruit Limited conducts due diligence on all new suppliers during on-boarding and on existing suppliers at regular intervals. This includes:  

  • Assessing risks in the provision of particular services  
  • Auditing the suppliers, and their health and safety standards, labour relations and employee contracts  
  • Requiring improvements to substandard employment practices  
  • Sanctioning suppliers that fail to improve their performance in line with our requirements

We require all suppliers to attest that:  

  • They don’t use any form of forced, compulsory or slave labour  
  • Their employees work voluntarily and are entitled to leave work  
  • They provide each employee with an employment contract that contains a reasonable notice period for terminating their employment  
  • They don’t require employees to post a deposit/bond and don’t withhold their salaries for any reasons  
  • They don’t require employees to surrender their passports or work permits as a condition of employment

Amendment (16/11/2018): As of November this year, every supplier we use has signed and returned a declaration stating they meet the requirements listed immediately above.

Awareness

Nim’s Fruit Limited has raised awareness of modern slavery issues and will be putting up posters across our facility and sending an email that is focused specifically on modern slavery to all our staff, which explains:  

  • Our commitment in the fight against modern slavery  
  • Red flags for potential cases of slavery or human trafficking  
  • How employees should report suspicions of modern slavery

Training

In addition to the awareness programme, Nim’s Fruit Limited will provide training to all employees and supplier contacts, which covers:  

  • Various forms of modern slavery in which people can be held and exploited  
  • The size of the problem and the risk to our organisation  
  • How employees can identify the signs of slavery and human trafficking, including unrealistically low prices  
  • How employees should respond if they suspect slavery or human trafficking  
  • How suppliers can escalate potential slavery or human trafficking issues to the relevant people within their own organisation  
  • What external help is available for the victims of slavery  
  • What terms and guidance should be provided to suppliers in relation to slavery policies and controls  
  • What steps Nim’s Fruit Limited will take if a supplier fails to implement anti-slavery policies or controls  
  • An attestation from employees that they will abide by Nim’s Fruit Limited’s anti-slavery policy

Measuring how we’re performing

Nim’s Fruit Limited has defined a set of key performance indicators and controls to combat modern slavery and human trafficking in our organisation and supply chain. These include:

  • How many employees have completed mandatory training?  
  • How many suppliers have filled out our ethics questionnaire?  
  • How many suppliers have rolled out an awareness and training programme that is equivalent to ours?  
  • How many reports have been made by our employees that indicate their awareness of and sensitivity to ethical issues?  

 

This statement covers 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019 and has been approved by the CEO of Nim’s Fruit Limited.

Nimisha Raja

28/09/2018

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