Companies' sugar suppliers kicking farmers off their land in poor countries
BOSTON, Oct. 16, 2013
/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- On World Food Day, thousands of people
around the US joined international relief and development organization
Oxfam America to call on the world's biggest sugary beverage companies,
Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, to help prevent human rights violations in their
supply chains. Oxfam and its supporters held actions at Coca-Cola and
PepsiCo headquarters and in communities across the country, to demand
that the companies take steps to prevent land grabs that leave small
farmers hungry.
A recent investigation by Oxfam
found that the biggest brand names in the food and beverage industry
are relying on suppliers who have grabbed land from small-farmers in
countries like Cambodia and Brazil.
The report highlights examples of land grabs and disputes linked to
companies that supply sugar for Coca-Cola and PepsiCo products, as well
as allegations of disputes inside Associated British Foods' supply
chain. More than 50,000 people have already taken action by signing
Oxfam's petition calling on the three food and beverage giants to
improve their policies to prevent land grabs by their suppliers.
"Consumers are demanding that Coca-Cola and PepsiCo take responsibility for how their ingredients are produced," said Judy Beals,
campaign manager for Oxfam's Behind the Brands campaign. "These
companies are immensely powerful and they have the ability and the
responsibility to stand up for communities where their ingredients are
grown."
Land
grabs happen when local communities that rely on land to feed their
families and earn a living are evicted without consent or compensation.
Oxfam's "Behind the Brands" campaign has warned that the world's ten
biggest food and drink companies, including Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, lack
strong enough policies to prevent land grabs and land disputes in their
supply chains.
Oxfam
is calling on Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, as well as Associated British
Foods, to become leaders in their industry by making a commitment to
zero tolerance of land grabs in their supply chains, to publicly
disclose from whom and where they source their commodities, and take
other measures to prevent land rights violations.
"The
message from consumers is only growing stronger and harder for
companies to ignore," said Beals. "The time for action is long overdue."
Notes:
Oxfam's Behind the Brands campaign aims to provide people who buy and
enjoy these products with the information they need to hold the Big 10
food and drink brands - Associated British Foods (ABF), Coca Cola,
Danone, General Mills, Kellogg's, Mars, Mondelez, Nestlé, PepsiCo and
Unilever - to account for what happens in their supply chains. The
Behind the Brands Company Scorecard – which includes scores for company
policies on land - can be viewed at http://www.behindthebrands.org/en/company-scorecard Consumers can support the campaign by emailing ABF, PepsiCo and Coca-Cola at www.behindthebrands.org
Oxfam
America is a global organization working to right the wrongs of
poverty, hunger, and injustice. We save lives, develop long-term
solutions to poverty, and campaign for social change. As one of 17
members of the international Oxfam confederation, we work with people in
more than 90 countries to create lasting solutions. To join our efforts
or learn more, go to www.oxfamamerica.org.
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