Twinings Ovaltine

Twinings Ovaltine has controls and processes in place to assess and manage human and labour rights risks across its global supply chain. It recognises that upholding and promoting human rights practices across its value chain can be a critical foundation for a more sustainable and resilient business. The business is committed to embedding the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises into its sourcing, and thereby conducting business with integrity and respecting human and labour rights principles through its Code of Conduct and Human Rights Policy.

Twinings Ovaltine continues to develop its due diligence approach, including audit procedures and training to support the implementation of its Code of Conduct and Human Rights Policy. These include its Factory Monitoring and Improvement Programme (FMIP), the Twinings Community Needs Assessment (TCNA) programme and Modern Slavery Awareness training.

FMIP covers its own operations as well as tier one supplier sites, including third-party manufacturers (e.g. co-manufacturers, licensing), warehouses, packaging, raw materials processors and branded items for promotion, as well as construction services at their own sites. Each site is risk assessed, taking into account country, products, labour rights risk and the importance of the supplier to the business. All high-risk suppliers, defined as those with significant potential for human rights and labour issues, as well as being significant suppliers to Twinings Ovaltine, are audited by an independent third party. Based on their findings and requirements, high-risk sites are re-audited at least every three years, or sooner to check the required action has been completed. Sites assessed as medium or low risk are subject to ad hoc semi-announced spot checks, where suppliers are given a two-week window in which the spot check will be conducted. Where non-compliances are identified, suppliers are required to take action to resolve the issues, within a specified time frame. In 2025, Twinings completed a comprehensive review of its FMIP audit framework against Lloyd’s Register Quality Assurance (LRQA) standards and Sedex’s SMETA (Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit) 7.0 Framework, updating its materials and process where required, including developing a bespoke foreign migrant worker assessment tool.

Modern slavery training continues to be rolled out for tier one supplier factories operating in high-risk countries, with a focus on suppliers employing migrant workers. The e-learning course is developed by Twinings, and suppliers are able to complete the course once they have registered.

In its tea and herb supply chains, Twinings Ovaltine is working towards supporting suppliers to address the needs of the communities from which it sources. It purchases tea only from Rainforest Alliance certified gardens, and complements this with its own Twinings Community Needs Assessment across tea gardens, estates, farms and key herb suppliers to better understand the issues in its tea and herb supply chains. To strengthen its approach to monitoring its supply chain, it is moving to an annual risk-based approach cycle. It will carry out a full TCNA in year one, which is repeated in year two for high-risk sites, and for lower-risk sites it will carry out a follow-up visit to focus on implementation of the action plan and context-specific risks.

Twinings’ TCNA framework takes a holistic approach to assessing human rights risks and community needs in its supply chain. It focuses on hearing directly from workers, farmers and community members through focus group discussions, interviews, surveys and observations. This provides first-hand insight into the challenges and aspirations of these communities and helps identify areas for improvement.

A TCNA covers issues related to human rights and the welfare of workers in its supply chain such as gender, health and nutrition, children’s rights, livelihoods, water and sanitation, natural resources, farming practices, housing and working conditions. This approach allows Twinings to identify specific issues and develop targeted programmes that help to address the needs of each community.

Following issues identified in its Kenyan tea supply chain in 2023, Twinings developed a Gender Based Violence and Harassment (GBVH) Policy to help tea gardens effectively prevent and address GBVH, reduce risks, and aim to protect women workers.

Twinings is committed to playing a leading role in developing a progressive and thriving tea and herbs industry. It recognises that this will require collaboration with a range of stakeholders across the sector to help bring about industry-wide change. To achieve its ambitions, it works with partners on the ground in its key sourcing regions to help address societal and environmental industry-wide issues. Its partners include producers, NGOs, government agencies and industry platforms, as well as the tea and herb growing communities it sources from.