Henryson Foods Statement on Modern Slavery 2023

This statement is made under section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and it sets out the steps Henryson Foods International Ltd. (henceforth referred to as HFI) has taken as at the financial year ending 31 December 2023 to ensure that slavery and human trafficking are not taking place in either our core operations or our supply chains.

Our Business:

HFI has signed contracts with all its members of staff, setting out agreed terms and conditions of working.  All staff have access to a staff handbook which they are free to take home, and this contains information on employee rights, including but not limited to UK laws and regulations on pay, working hours, sickness and absence entitlement, grievance and disciplinary procedures and notice period requirements.  

As a small business, HFI does not require a full time HR manager but we employ a dedicated external consultant for human resources, from the HR Dept (https://www.hrdept.co.uk/), who has worked with HFI for over 15 years.  All members of HFI staff have access to the HR Dept contact details and our company’s consultant.  Staff are aware that they are free to contact the HR Dept. regards any concerns or queries about their contracts or general working practices/ conditions at HFI.  

The HR Dept regularly updates HFI on any changes in employment law, how this affects us and our employees and the steps that need to be taken to ensure legal compliance.

To ensure a high level of understanding of the risks of modern slavery and human trafficking in our business and in our supply chains we provide relevant in-house training to our employees on induction and this training is reviewed annually.   This training sets out the following principles:

HFI is committed to ensure that the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) Base Code is upheld throughout its own practices and those of its supply chain partners and service providers – the principles are outlined below:

1. Employment is freely chosen;

2. Freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining are respected;

3. Working conditions are safe and hygienic;

4. Child labour shall not be used;

5. Living wages are paid;

6. Working hours are not excessive;

7. No discrimination is practised;

8. Regular employment is provided; and

9. No harsh or inhumane treatment is allowed.

HFI is Sedex registered and committed to promoting transparency with our customers and suppliers regards working practices and supply chains.

Our Supply Chains:

HFI has direct relationships with all its manufacturer suppliers that are located outside of the UK.  As part of our initiative to identify, monitor and mitigate against industry risk in the countries in which we operate, we audit suppliers and service providers at a frequency based on risk and if possible, during the visit we also visit the suppliers of our suppliers, for example, we visit egg farms at the same time as we would visit an egg processing site.  

All suppliers and service providers must sign an agreement with HFI on approval, in which they state their commitment to identifying and eradicating modern slavery in their supply chains as well as protecting whistle blowers.  We also require our business partners to provide regular and relevant training to their staff, suppliers, and service providers.  The supplier and service provider agreements are reviewed annually.  

Breaches of This Policy

Non-observance of this Policy by employees may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination of employment. Contractors, agents or other third parties working on our behalf, are also required to observe this Policy.

Statement

This statement is made pursuant to section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and constitutes our Company's slavery and human trafficking statement for the financial year ending 31st December 2023 and was approved by the Board of Directors of Henryson Foods International Ltd. on 23 January 2024.

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