While it will be affected, Apple might mind less than others that the European Union has agreed to new rules to regulate corporate supply chains — in part, because the company is already moving in a similar direction.
That’s not to say it doesn’t have, hasn’t had, and likely will experience problems in its supply chain. But its annual supplier transparency, environmental responsibility, and other corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives do at least promise the company thinks about these things.
What the latest EU rule means is that competitors will need to be at least as responsible, too — and will be forced to include this data within their financial reporting.
“The new rules will make more businesses accountable for their impact on society and will guide them towards an economy that benefits people and the environment,” explained Jozef Síkela, Minister for Industry and Trade.
What are the nature of the new EU rules?
Mother Earth will smile at the new EU rules
In brief, the catchily-titled “Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive” (CSRD) mean the world’s biggest companies will be obliged to report on business sustainability. They will also be required to ensure businesses and supply chain partners don’t negatively impact human rights or the environment and commit to (and prove) no forced labor, no child labor, no exploitation of workers, no pollution, no deforestation, no water waste, and no harm to ecosystems.
To some extent, the new rules reflect a conversation Apple has been engaged in for some time, culminating in the “Mother Earth” video shown at the iPhone 15 launch in September. Many critics condemned that video, in which Apple attempted to draw attention to the importance of CSR practices.
In fact, if you believed what you read, you’d imagine it was a disaster. That would be incorrect.
The video has been watched 4.4 million times on YouTube, which suggests millions more views elsewhere — and allegedly most who did watch it did so to the end. The clip drew attention to the relationship between consumer electronics and the environment. In other words, it promoted the company message and had a bigger impact than the critic’s words.
But these promises can’t simply be lip service. Apple and most big consumer electronics firms will be affected by the new EU rules, and will be forced to prove they keep their promises.
What this means for the industry
Many devices today make use of rare earths and materials, many of which are mined at gunpoint in conflict zones, and while most manufacturers pay lip service to eradicating use of such conflict minerals, they will now be forced to prove they’ve done so. I’m in no doubt that some of tech’s biggest names will be caught out by these new rules.
For Apple, the impact may be more limited, given the company has already been engaged on some of these matters across the last decade. All the same, a move to relatively consistent reporting…
2023-12-17 03:00:04
Original from www.computerworld.com
