Dear Mr. Secretary General,

It is my pleasure to reassert herewith the renewed commitment of UTZ DC S.A. as signatory members of the UN Global Compact, to support the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact pertaining to Human Rights, Labour Law, Environmental Protection and AntiCorruption initiatives.

We also wish to express our clear determination to advance these principles in our sphere of influence, and our commitment to mainstream them into our corporate strategy, business culture and operational practices. We are furthermore committed to report openly and publicly on this topic, and to inform our employees, business partners and customers about our performance. In this perspective of accountability and transparency, we report publicly on the results of our initiatives in favour of a sound enforcement of the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact via our Communication on Progress published this year.

Please find attached our 2016 Communication on Progress.

Respectfully yours,
Jonathan Porta
CEO
UTZ DC S.A.

Human Rights
We seek to meet and exceed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Our goals are to create sustainable and dignified employment opportunities, formalize the creative economy, embolden small scale producers to access a larger market and grow their businesses, through the creation of an inclusive and equitable e-commerce infrastructure.

We denounce discrimination, harassment and abuse within the structure of UTZ DC and seek to ensure that all of our employees and partners have a common understanding of what it means to treat all people, regardless of race, gender, religion, ethnicity, social status, level of education, nationality, age, disability, sexual preference, civil status, and political affiliation with respect and decency by having them sign in agreement with our Code of Ethics.

All employees and Brand Partners are presented with the UTZ Code of Ethics, promising to uphold our standards related to social, laboral, and environmental impact.

UTZ DC instituted a monthly team meeting at which we discuss a topic related to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights or one of our goals to create a common understanding of the topic among our employees. After each meeting topics discussed and resolutions are posted in the office to be reviewed annually as a team.

In addition we have created a suggestion/grievance box where any employee can share their ideas or grievances anonymously to management for discussion and company wide resolution.

In the last year all employees and 12 of UTZ Market brand partners signed our Code of Ethics and committed to uphold our standards in social, laboral, and environmental impact.

Last year UTZ hosted 3 discussions on topics related to Human Rights which were attended by all full time employees at the time.

UTZ received 4 grievances all of which were were discussed and addressed opening after review by top management.

UTZ D.C. created a system of badges to promote products that in accordance with the sustainable development goals and support human rights projects enabling clients to find products that meet their values.

A main objective of UTZ DC is to create economic opportunities within Guatemala, Central America, and eventually South America and the world that embolden small scale producers and artisans to earn dignified incomes while maintaining the best labor practices within UTZ and promoting these practices among our partners. We believe that with the proper infrastructure in place individuals will be able to build their own small businesses, create legal and dignified employment opportunities, provide for their families, educate their children, and invest in their futures.

We uphold the standards of the ILO Core Conventions. We stand against child and forced labor. We stand for women receiving equal pay for equal work. We stand against discrimination, harassment, and abuse in the workplace whether that workplace is in an office, a cooperative, or in a home. All employees of UTZ DC have the right to collective bargaining, no UTZ employee will be required to work over 60 per week including overtime. We stand for creating jobs for underserved, previously excluded persons and to provide them with trainings and tangible skill sets that they can use for the rest of their lives. All employees of UTZ DC will be paid at or above the national minimum wage, and all employees will receive key trainings on UTZ DC culture, safety and how to best perform their job.

All UTZ DC employees are trained on safety: How to safely perform their job and prevent injury in the workplace.

All employees sign a contract extrapolating on their job requirements, including hours, overtime, and right to collective bargaining and have access to a suggestion/grievances box to disclaim any wrongs that have been made or improvements that can be made.

Hours and times are tracked to ensure that no employee works over 60 hours per week or receives less than the minimum wage which is set above the national standard for Guatemala.

UTZ DC authored a section of our Code of Ethics on labor rights that we share with all of our employees and partner brands.

UTZ DC created a system of badges to promote products that create sustainable employment opportunities for disadvantaged communities enabling clients to find products that meet their values.

All of our employees and 12 current partner brands have signed our Code of Ethics that clearly defines our stance on labor rights.

All of UTZ DC’s diverse team of employees are paid at or above the national minimum wage.

There were no work related injuries during the last year.

One large brand partner received training on evaluating time as a core input in the production process and has reevaluated the price of products to reflect the amount of time it takes to produce their products improving their wage to meet minimum wage standards.

Environmental protection and conservation are key values that we hold at UTZ DC. So much of our inspiration comes from our natural environment and many of the brands we partner with, people we serve, and the communities of our employees depend on a clean and healthy environment for their livelihoods. In all of our key activities we take environmental impact into account and seek to reduce our negative impact whenever possible and to leave the natural world better each day.

Our marketplace and shipping units have distinct policies against the use and sale of dangerous (for people or the environment) products, toxic or hazardous materials or chemicals, and endangered flora or fauna. At the same time we prioritize partnerships that support environmental preservation and conservation.

UTZ DC has instituted a recycling program to increase the amount of recycled packaging that we use as well as a system to dispose of any toxic or hazardous products we have come into contact with, this year a priority was put on batteries as those were the main products that we encountered and needed to dispose of.

UTZ DC invested in water purification to eliminate our dependency on bottled water while providing safe drinking water to all employees, partners and visitors, at all times.

UTZ DC created a system of badges to promote products that are verified environmentally friendly enabling clients to find products that meet their values.

We use over 50% recycled material in our packaging while reducing our overall amount of waste over a year with rapid growth.

Over 30% of the brands we partner with have an emphasis on protecting and conserving the environment while a smaller subset produces produces products with recycled materials.

UTZ has eliminated the need for over 1,500 plastic non reusable bottles over the course of the year.

UTZ D.C. has a zero tolerance policy for corruption, bribery and extortion. A key objective of UTZ DC is to be an example and leader among small and medium enterprises in Guatemala and Central America when it comes to ethical and impactful business practices. We are committed to comply with all local and international laws related to corruption, bribery and extortion.

All employees are asked to report on any suspicious behavior within the business through our suggestion & grievances box. All submissions of suspicious behavior will be reviewed by a team of at least three employees.

UTZ DC has implemented a system for purchases over $1,000 requiring review by top management, and for all purchases or contracts over $3,000 review from the Board of Directors.

For all purchases over $300 a market investigation needs to be completed to compare at least three providers and their prices.

Company financials are reviewed quarterly and all full time employees who are interested in participating are invited to join the meeting.

All personal relationships between UTZ DC and partner brands or businesses must be disclosed to human resources.

All full time employees have been trained on what is corruption, how to identify it, and how to report it.