Business ethics in the food industry

Ethics

The company can source most of the products from all over the world. The fruit juices and canned fruits are easiest to source from the countries of their origin, but the baked goods and candies can be sourced from virtually anywhere. Given the location of the revenues, sources in both the EU and the Americas would be recommended. In addition, the company can outsource some of its customer service and it functions to lower-cost nations such as those in Asia.

There are a number of potential ethical issues that can arise from international operations. Legal protections for workers are often less developed in other parts of the world compared to Britain. In particular facilities outside of the EU or North America are at risk of violations due to lack of legal infrastructure. Hiring, firing and the treatment of women and minorities, and workers in general are all potential issues that might be faced in outsourcing beyond the West (Hussein, 2009). Human rights abuses are possible, particularly in the agricultural-based businesses. We rely on suppliers and may be in a position where their rights abuses of migrant agricultural workers reflect poorly on us (HRW, 2010).

There are also environmental issues, again often owing to a lack of regulation and the company's decisions with respect to environmental stewardship. One noteworthy issue is that of genetically modified foods, which are prevalent in North America but generally contentious in Europe (FAO, 2001). If we move some of our production offshore to emerging markets, we may be in a position where actions that are legal in that jurisdiction but are illegal or violate the ethics standards back home. This could result in negative publicity, so the firm must analyze the potential ethical hazards before entering other countries (Williams, 2002).

The first step in ensuring that the company does not run afoul of current ethical sentiments is to create a common code of ethics that apply to all of the subsidiaries. The code would set a standard for the company that is good for all countries, making up for some of the deficiencies in the local legal frameworks and reconciling some of the differences in local ethical standards (van Tulder & Kolk, 2001). The second step is to initiate a supplier code of conduct. The greatest potential for ethical violations falls with suppliers such as agricultural firms or offshored service providers, and these violations can result in negative publicity for the company.