About the Tools

The COFFEE Project developed the Socially Sustainable Sourcing Toolkit (S3T) in close alignment with USDOL’s Comply Chain framework, which focuses on creating a virtuous cycle of continuous improvement in order to address labor issues in company supply chains. Verité has developed at least one tool for each step of Comply Chain. Learn more about Comply Chain methodology

Click here for a narrated overview of each tool.

The S3T is a comprehensive and detailed set of 17 tools that help businesses and other stakeholders detect, prevent, and address labor violations in the coffee sector. Among the tools is an online interactive Risk Evaluation for Action in the Coffee Trade (RE-ACT) Dashboard that helps users to proactively identify labor risks and their root causes in leading Latin American coffee-producing countries. The other tools are document-based and can be accessed online or printed out. A guidance document on definitions and international standards and all 17 tools are available in English, Spanish, and Portuguese in the accordion tabs on the right.

Participatory Tool Development Process

Verité carried out research and stakeholder consultations internationally and in Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico in order to determine which tools were needed to address labor risks in the Latin American coffee sector. The tools were developed using a Human-Centered Design approach. Verité solicited feedback from a variety of stakeholders with expertise and interest in the Latin American coffee sector—with a focus on the tools’ end-users— thereby improving the potential for widespread adoption. This included a technical review by an Expert Committee, comprised of civil society and industry association representatives, and validation by an Advisory Council, comprised of coffee companies, certifiers, and other intended end-users of the S3T. Verité refined the tools after receiving feedback from these key stakeholders, and subsequently translated them into Spanish and Portuguese. After piloting the tools in Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico, the tools will be further refined and finalized.