FAB-D.02.D - Forced Labour Supply Chain Progress
Does the company demonstrate progress towards eliminating forced labour in its supply chain?
About the data
The WBA Food and Agriculture Benchmark measures and ranks the world's most influential food and agriculture companies on their efforts to transform global food systems, tracking how companies work towards food that is healthy and nutritious, produced sustainably within planetary boundaries, and accessible and fairly produced for all. The 2026 edition assessed 350 companies spanning the entirety of the food and agriculture value chain, from agricultural inputs and commodities through to manufacturing, retail, and food service. Companies were scored on 23 food and agriculture-specific indicators and 18 core social indicators across four measurement areas: governance, sustainable food systems, healthy food systems, and inclusive food systems. The benchmark is developed in close collaboration with an Expert Review Committee and is designed to incentivise the most influential companies in the sector to adopt sustainable business practices across their own operations and supply chains, addressing critical issues including greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation, freshwater use, nutrition, and living incomes for farmers, with human rights and social equity at its core. More information can be found here.
Methodology
A recent estimate shows 27.6 million people are currently in situations of forced labour and
the agriculture sector accounts for 12% of adult forced labour (ILO, Walk Free and IOM, 2022).
Workers face various forms of coercion, the most common being wage withholding. Migrant workers
are particularly vulnerable, being three times more at risk due to unfair recruitment practices and the
inability to exercise their rights, among other factors (ILO, Walk Free, and IOM, 2022). Meeting the
SDG targets to end forced labour among children by 2025 and universally by 2030 requires faster
progress. With nearly two-thirds of forced labour occurring in the private economy, companies must
step up efforts to eliminate it within their operations and supply chains.
Research Guidance:
The company must provide quantitative data on how it has improved over the years on decreasing the incidence of forced labour in its supply chain.
The company thus needs to fulfil two requirements:
**Quantitative data**
To fulfil this requirement, companies need to disclose quantitative data on forced labour in general, or one of the manifestations of forced labour (recruitment fees, illicit wage practices, restrictions on workers). Examples are (non-exhaustive):
% of supplier audits where forced labour issues were detected
% of suppliers audited that are in compliance with forced labour provisions
Number of incidents related to forced labour
**Progress**
To fully meet the element, the data disclosed must be comparable across at least two reporting periods and demonstrate progress. This could include:
Showing a reduction in the number or percentage of incidents where forced labour is detected.
Demonstrating an increase in the percentage of suppliers that are in compliance with forced labour provisions.
Tracking improvements over multiple years to clearly show how the company‚s efforts are making an impact.
the agriculture sector accounts for 12% of adult forced labour (ILO, Walk Free and IOM, 2022).
Workers face various forms of coercion, the most common being wage withholding. Migrant workers
are particularly vulnerable, being three times more at risk due to unfair recruitment practices and the
inability to exercise their rights, among other factors (ILO, Walk Free, and IOM, 2022). Meeting the
SDG targets to end forced labour among children by 2025 and universally by 2030 requires faster
progress. With nearly two-thirds of forced labour occurring in the private economy, companies must
step up efforts to eliminate it within their operations and supply chains.
Research Guidance:
The company must provide quantitative data on how it has improved over the years on decreasing the incidence of forced labour in its supply chain.
The company thus needs to fulfil two requirements:
**Quantitative data**
To fulfil this requirement, companies need to disclose quantitative data on forced labour in general, or one of the manifestations of forced labour (recruitment fees, illicit wage practices, restrictions on workers). Examples are (non-exhaustive):
% of supplier audits where forced labour issues were detected
% of suppliers audited that are in compliance with forced labour provisions
Number of incidents related to forced labour
**Progress**
To fully meet the element, the data disclosed must be comparable across at least two reporting periods and demonstrate progress. This could include:
Showing a reduction in the number or percentage of incidents where forced labour is detected.
Demonstrating an increase in the percentage of suppliers that are in compliance with forced labour provisions.
Tracking improvements over multiple years to clearly show how the company‚s efforts are making an impact.
License
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Value Type
Category
Options
Yes
No
Assessment
Steward Assessed
Report Type
Aggregate Data Report