Verité

Verité strives for people to work under safe, fair, and legal conditions. As an independent, non-profit, civil society organisation, Verité is recognised for its credibility. Since 1995, Verité has partnered with hundreds of corporations, governments, and NGOs to illuminate labour rights violations in supply chains and remedy them to the benefit of workers and companies alike. Verité has a history of work in over 70 countries, with a global network of experts in Africa, Asia, Europe, South America, North America and Australia.

Vérité aims to provide businesses with tools that help to eliminate labour abuses, empower workers to advocate for their rights, create publicly shared resources that enlighten and drive action, as well as contribute their expertise to government labour and human rights policies.

Donors/Partners

Verité is currently partnering with a number of government, civil society, industry association, and private sector donors and partners in the coffee sector, especially in relation to the Cooperation on Fair, Free, Equitable Employment (COFFEE) Project, including:

• La Asociación Nacional de Industriales del Café (ANICAFE)
• La Asociación Colombiana para la Excelencia del Café (ASECC)
• Catholic Relief Services (CRS)
• The Coca-Cola Company – Mexico
• Conservation International
• Counter Culture Coffee
• Intelligentsia Coffee
• International Women in Coffee Alliance (Alianza de Mujeres)
• Jacobs Douwe Egberts (JDE)
• The J.M. Smucker Company
• Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP)
• Nestle Nespresso SA
• Rainforest Alliance
• RGC Coffee
• Secretaría de Agricultura y Desarrollo Rural (SADER)
• Specialty Coffee Association (SCA)
• Starbucks
• The U.S. Department of Labor
• The U.S. Department of State

Key activities

Verité conducts comprehensive audits, investigations, and screenings to provide insight into working conditions in global supply chains. They do also guide companies in strengthening internal and supply chain management systems that proactively control risks to the business and its employees. 

Verité undertakes independent, original research on key issues and challenges in responsible sourcing and design and deliver in-person and web-based training programs for critical stakeholders that provide the knowledge and skills to detect and address the root causes of legal and code violations.

Signature projects/tools

• Cooperation on Fair, Free, Equitable Employment (COFFEE) Project (https://www.verite.org/coffee-project-launch/)
• Improving Supply Chain Transparency, Monitoring and Accountability in Guatemala’s Coffee Sector (https://www.verite.org/improving-supply-chain-transparency-monitoring-and-accountability-in-guatemalas-coffee-sector/)
• CUMULUS Forced Labor Screen™ secure online platform to map labour supply chains and assess forced labour and human trafficking risks (https://www.verite.org/cumulus/)  

Priority Countries and corresponding areas of activities

Brazil: Labour conditions – Sourcing policies – Standards/certification – Gender, youth & indigenous peoples – Technical assistance

Colombia: Labour conditions – Sourcing policies – Standards/certification – Gender, youth & indigenous peoples – Technical assistance

Guatemala: Labour conditions – Sourcing policies – Standards/certification – Gender, youth & indigenous peoples – Technical assistance

Honduras: Labour conditions – Sourcing policies – Standards/certification – Gender, youth & indigenous peoples – Technical assistance

Mexico: Labour conditions – Sourcing policies – Standards/certification – Gender, youth & indigenous peoples – Technical assistanc

Peru: Labour conditions – Sourcing policies – Standards/certification – Gender, youth & indigenous peoples – Technical assistance