Several Fair Trade companies in the WFTO-Europe membership has co-signed this statement calling on the EU’s legislators to ensure legal certainty and a level playing field for businesses implementing sustainability policies.

In the statement, WFTO-Europe and its members firmly reject calls to repeal or significantly weaken the CSDDD whether by renegotiation or Omnibus simplification. Fair Trade enterprises are mission-led businesses upholding high levels of due diligence on Human Rights and Labour Rights in their business operations. Often their mission is precisely to improve the conditions and livelihoods of workers and producers by ensuring them trade on fair terms.

However, voluntary HREDD frameworks on their own are not sufficient and the CSDDD provides exactly the type of regulatory incentive for companies to uphold a minimum level of due diligence on Human Rights and the environment in their supply chains. More than that, it ensures a level playing field so frontrunners, the type of fair and ethical businesses we need for a sustainable economy, are not penalised from exploitative and unfair competition from mainstream businesses. The EU legislators should recognise their responsibility to safeguard this ground-breaking Directive as it sets an important precedence.