IMVO Convenant Sierteeltsector

General

The agreement for International Responsible Business Conduct (IRBC, Dutch: IMVO) in the floriculture sector (Dutch: sierteeltsector) is one in which signatories and otherwise supporting parties cooperate on making the floriculture sector more sustainable pursuant to the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, whereby the Parties’ intention is to make substantial progress, within a three-year period, towards improving the circumstances of those who may experience adverse impacts in connection with the floriculture sector. The complexity of the international value chain calls for a collective effort to prevent or mitigate adverse impacts. Accordingly, many different parties in the sector, the Government of the Netherlands, the trade union and the NGO have joined forces to leverage their efforts. Companies that adhere to the Agreement will make every effort to discharge their responsibility for preventing and mitigating risks or adverse impacts of their own operations and/or the operations of their business relationships in the production or supply chain. To this end, they will perform due diligence, as described in the OECD Guidelines and the UNGPs. In doing so, they will have access to the collective and shared knowledge of the other stakeholders in this Agreement and benefit from the opportunities. The Parties have identified the following specific issues associated with international responsible business conduct that parties operating in the floriculture sector should prioritize (listed in random order): living wage, women’s (including combatting sexual harassment), health and safety related to exposure to plant protection products, land rights, climate change, water usage, environmental impact of plant protection products.