Our Modern Slavery Act Statement
The Direct Produce Supplies Ltd (dps) board of directors have approved and signed the below statement
The UK Modern Slavery Act 2015 requires dps to demonstrate actions to reduce modern slavery, human trafficking and forced labour risks across the supply chain each year.
To demonstrate our on-going commitment and transparency: dps have published our full Modern Slavery statement in the following locations: UK Government Modern Slavery Registry and dps 2020 – 2021 Modern Slavery Report
Our 2021 – 2022 statement refers to the financial year ending 30th September 2022 and includes the measures implemented to identify, mitigate, and prevent modern slavery risks in our own operations and upstream supply chains.
We are cognisant of the unprecedented times in which we operate; in the current report year the supply chain impacts of COVID-19 pandemic and Brexit have been compounded by the Ukraine war and extreme global temperatures. The intersection of these events undoubtedly increases vulnerabilities and exploitation risks faced by some of the people working within our supply chain. dps, together with our partners, are continuously working towards a supply chain where trust and transparency are improved.
We recognise there is more work to do to prevent exploitation and modern slavery but are pleased with the progress we have made over the last 12 months:
- Implemented a new ethical trade and human rights policy
- Increased suppliers risk assessments to prioritise action plans
- Maintained Stronger2gether Advanced Business Partner status
- Improved employee awareness by launching Modern Slavery Week
- Started to measure KPIs, impacts and the effectiveness of our plan
In the forthcoming year we aim to identify the most salient modern slavery risks in our supply chain by country, crop, and vulnerability.
This statement has been approved by the dps Board of Directors.
Paul Beynon
dps Group CEO
March 2023