Traceability Provides Evidence of Conflict Free Minerals and Timber Legality

Using raw materials from irresponsible sources can damage your brand and your profits. NGO’s like Change.org and Greenpeace are raising awareness of the environment and the cost of irresponsible sourcing:

• Mobile phones, laptops, digital cameras and jewelry have been associated with the use of conflict minerals, directly or indirectly financing armed conflict.
• Timber products associated with deforestation due to illegal logging.
• Garments have been linked to the use of forced child labor by the Uzbek government in cotton harvesting.

UL Responsible Sourcing’s traceability programs integrate with your current sourcing practices to trace your products’ components, verify documentation of origin and trade, and provide objective evidence of the source of raw materials used in your products. By establishing a complete and uninterrupted chain of custody you can more easily:

• Comply with new regulatory requirements, including Section 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Act and the Lacey Act.
• Understand and monitor product quality.
• Enhance public perception as a responsible industry leader.
• Disassociate your brand with forced and child labor, armed conflict and sexual violence.
• Abate increasing pressure from media, investors and NGOs.

Utilizing nearly 20 years of social compliance experience, UL Responsible Sourcing can help protect your brand and profits. Traceability services include:

• Traceability assessments of upstream and downstream suppliers.
• Supply chain risk assessments.
• Onsite and online supplier trainings.
• Policy benchmarking.

Conflict Mineral traceability:

• Smelter/refinery traceability assessments.
• Assessments of supplier due diligence measures.
• Mine chain of custody.

Timber supply chain traceability:

• Timber legality assessments.
• Certified wood chain of custody assessments.

Dodd-Frank Act
Responding to the humanitarian crisis in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the U.S. Congress tasked the Security Exchange Commission (SEC) with the implementation of the Dodd-Frank Act, a new legislation requiring companies to report on their use of minerals from the African Great Lakes region. Companies in the electronics, jewelry, pharmaceutical or automotive industries will have to submit independently audited annual reports, describing their efforts to determine the country of origin of raw material used in their products. Under the initiative of the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC), electronic companies have already started to take practical steps to monitor and audit the origin of their raw materials.

Lacey Act
The 2008 amendment to the Lacey Act was drafted in response to the heavy environmental toll from deforestation, and mandates that the species and country of origin of any plant or plant product, including wood must be declared. Importers, manufactures and retailers failing to exercise due care when sourcing, or for knowingly sourcing products that contain illegal timber or plants can incur penalties in excess of $500,000, and the possibility of jail sentence. In 2010, the European Parliament and European Council approved similar legislation to the Lacey Act, which will come into force in March 1, 2013. In a very short time, companies are being held accountable for their actions all the way down the supply chain.

Conflict Minerals
Conflict minerals is the term used to describe Tantalum, Tin, and Tungsten (the 3Ts), and Gold mined in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and is linked to the financing of armed groups, thereby contributing to the continuation of conflict and violation of basic human rights. Working conditions in DRC’s 3Ts and Gold mines are characterized by the use of forced labor, child labor and egregious health and safety conditions. 

Contact us to find out more about how UL Responsible Sourcing’s traceability services can help protect your brand.