The fallout from recent media reports of sex abuse on some Kenyan tea farms is another wake-up call for local companies to adopt ethical business practices or pay a heavy price in a market increasingly sensitive to social justice, human rights and sustainability.
Within days of BBC News exposing the sex scandal involving farm supervisors linked to James Finlay and Company, American coffeehouse chain Starbucks issued a statement saying it had immediately suspended buying tea from the Kenyan company.
UK retail chain Sainsbury’s was quoted in a BBC News article saying “these horrific allegations have no place in our supply chain”.
The backlash against James Finlay is similar to what another Kenyan-based agricultural firm Kakuzi endured in 2020 when it faced human rights abuse allegations.
While Kakuzi appeared to deny some of the allegations, the Nairobi Securities Exchange-listed company responded to the scrutiny of its business practices by establishing an independent advisory panel to guarantee compliance with global human rights matters.
The panel is benchmarked on the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, which require companies to prevent, address and remedy human rights abuses committed in their business operations.
The principles provide workers’ unions, affected communities and civil society with a framework for demanding accountability and the businesses with avenue for addressing grievances.
Other local companies should follow the example of Kakuzi. As the cases of Kakuzi and James Finlay product boycotts have demonstrated, perceptions of unethical business practices can be costly to companies.
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