Distribution Network
Content
The UK spirits and wines distributor Allied Domecq has brought together a group of ‘ethical champions’ inside the company as part of its effort to embed ethical trading principles throughout the company.
Allied Domecq invited the 16 champions, 15 from Europe and one from Asia, for a two-day meeting at Coombe Lodge, a country house in the west of England – the first time they have met together.
The staff, drawn from all levels of the business and including the finance director of the company’s Italian division, have been asked to spread the principles enshrined in the company’s ethical code and to promote responsible business practice by setting a good example.
One of their main tasks will be to encourage buyers to take greater account of ethical considerations. Allied Domecq, which is the world’s second largest spirits and wines company behind Diageo, recently set for its buyers new performance targets that offer guidelines on ethical procurement.
The meeting featured sessions on the code and a workshop with Alyson Warhurst, director of Warwick Business School’s corporate citizenship unit.
Allied Domecq’s group social policy manager Ben Eavis said the company would now consider finding ethical champions in its operations in the Americas.
The work is part of a wider revision of the FTSE 100 company’s ethical trading policies and procedures. In May 2003 Allied Domecq updated its ethical policy, and the following summer started to audit the social and environmental performance of its 35,000 suppliers.
A total of 715 companies, with whom Allied Domecq spends £863million ($1.65bn) a year, have now completed an online survey. This month the company expects to appoint a consultancy to conduct full ethical audits of ten large suppliers.
Allied Domecq’s suppliers, operating in European Union countries, Canada, China, India, Mexico and the US, mainly provide the company with the drinks it sells, glass for bottles and promotional point-of-sale materials.
Allied Domecq invited the 16 champions, 15 from Europe and one from Asia, for a two-day meeting at Coombe Lodge, a country house in the west of England – the first time they have met together.
The staff, drawn from all levels of the business and including the finance director of the company’s Italian division, have been asked to spread the principles enshrined in the company’s ethical code and to promote responsible business practice by setting a good example.
One of their main tasks will be to encourage buyers to take greater account of ethical considerations. Allied Domecq, which is the world’s second largest spirits and wines company behind Diageo, recently set for its buyers new performance targets that offer guidelines on ethical procurement.
The meeting featured sessions on the code and a workshop with Alyson Warhurst, director of Warwick Business School’s corporate citizenship unit.
Allied Domecq’s group social policy manager Ben Eavis said the company would now consider finding ethical champions in its operations in the Americas.
The work is part of a wider revision of the FTSE 100 company’s ethical trading policies and procedures. In May 2003 Allied Domecq updated its ethical policy, and the following summer started to audit the social and environmental performance of its 35,000 suppliers.
A total of 715 companies, with whom Allied Domecq spends £863million ($1.65bn) a year, have now completed an online survey. This month the company expects to appoint a consultancy to conduct full ethical audits of ten large suppliers.
Allied Domecq’s suppliers, operating in European Union countries, Canada, China, India, Mexico and the US, mainly provide the company with the drinks it sells, glass for bottles and promotional point-of-sale materials.
Super Featured
No
Featured
No