Bags of Sugar and Human Rights Violations
Bags of sugar that leave the Dalmia Bharat Sugar mill in the western Indian city of Kolhapur come with an industry guarantee: It was harvested humanely, in fields free of child labor, debt bondage, and abuse. However, an investigation by The New York Times reveals a starkly different reality.
The mill is certified by Bonsucro, a group that sets the industry standard for sugar production and is utilized by major brands like Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Unilever, and General Mills to assure customers of ethical supply chains. Despite this assurance, the inspection process conducted by Bonsucro is shown to be flawed and ineffective.
Internal documents and interviews with sugar mill executives, experts, and Bonsucro contractors indicate that audits are not comprehensive and are easily manipulated by the mills. Auditors have limited access and are rushed through inspections, preventing a thorough assessment. Additionally, audit details are kept confidential, hindering transparency and accountability.
Even auditors themselves acknowledge the rarity of uncovering violations. An auditor mentioned that in two years of auditing, no violations were found at the Dalmia mill and another mill owned by NSL Sugars in Maharashtra. This highlights the inadequacy of the current audit process.
Meanwhile, women working in the sugar cane fields face harsh conditions. Many reported being coerced into underage marriages to work alongside their husbands, trapped in cycles of debt by mill contractors, and pressured to undergo unnecessary medical procedures like hysterectomies to continue working in the fields.
The disparity between the industry’s claims of humane practices and the harsh realities faced by workers underscores the need for more robust oversight and genuine commitment to respecting human rights in the sugar production sector.
