T2 Tea
OVERALL |
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Owned |
NLD |
Rating |
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Tea
Founded in Melbourne by Maryanne Shearer in 1996. Operates 30 retail stores around Australia. Acquired by Unilever in 2013.
Company Ownership
| Tea Too Pty Ltd | AUS | website | ||||
Unilever Australia Ltd 
owns 100% of Tea Too Pty Ltd |
AUS | website | ||||
Food, beverage, bodycare and cleaning product manufacturing | ||||||
| Unilever
owns 100% of Unilever Australia Ltd |
NLD | website | ||||
Food, personal care and home care One of the worlds largest consumer goods companies, with sales in about 190 countries. Changed from a dual-structured company to a single legal entity based in the Netherlands in 2018. | ||||||
Company Assessment
| PRAISE | CRITICISM | INFORMATION | ||
| Tea Too Pty Ltd | ||||
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This company manufactures or distributes products that are certified organic under the Australian Certified Organic label.
[Source 2018][More on Eco-Certification]
This company sells Fairtrade Certified tea. However this only represents a fraction of their total tea sales.
[Source 2016][More on Workers Rights] |
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| Unilever Australia Ltd | ||||
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This company won awards in 2015, 2016 and 2017 from the Australian Packaging Covenant, for demonstrating their commitment to environmental sustainability by performing 'above and beyond' in their efforts to minimise waste. This company achieved the highest overall score in their category, large pharmaceutical and personal care company.
[Source 2017][More on Packaging]
Signatory to the Australian Packaging Covenant, a voluntary agreement to encourage waste minimisation.
[Source 2017][More on Packaging] |
Smiths awarded the 'most likely to be littered' award in Environment Victoria's DUMP report 2007. Seakist* Lunch Kit pack features seven different small packaging parts (steel can, foil packet, plastic fork, serviette, two loose paper labels and a PVC plastic container) that are highly likely to be littered or at best dumped in the bin because no recycling instructions or information is provided. *Please note Seakist is now owned by Simplot.
[Source 2007][More on Packaging]
In May 2016 the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) fined Unilever Australia $15,000 after soda ash leaked from a silo at the company's North Rocks premises. The EPA also issued Unilever with an official clean up notice.
[Source 2016][More on Habitats]
Brands owned by this company were rated 'red' in Greenpeace's 2011 Truefood Guide, signifying they may include GM-derived ingredients in their products. This includes brands that either: contain GM derived ingredients; have no clear policy on GM-derived ingredients; and/or have ignored or refused Greenpeace's request for information regarding their policies on GM-derived ingredients.
[Source 2011][More on Genetic Engineering]
This company has been criticised for offensive advertising. In 2007, 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2014 the Advertising Standards Bureau upheld complaints about ads by this company on the grounds that they breached advertising codes. The ads were subsequently discontinued or modified.
[Source 2014][More on Irresponsible Marketing]
In July 2016 the ACCC ordered this company to pay a penalty of $10,800 for making false or misleading representation on the packaging of popular products they supply that the products had been approved or were suitable as healthy options for school canteens.
[Source 2016][More on Irresponsible Marketing]
In 2011 the Therapeutic Goods Administration's Complaints Resolution Panel upheld a complaint about an ad by this company on the grounds that it breached advertising codes. The ad was subsequently withdrawn.
[Source 2011][More on Irresponsible Marketing]
This company sells Rainforest Alliance certified tea. However this only represents a fraction of this company's total tea sales. Rainforest Alliance certification has been dubbed 'Fairtrade light' by critics, as it offers producers no minimum price for their crop, and guarantees a minimum of just 30% of the product is certified.
[Source 2012][More on Eco-Certification]
This company is a signatory to the Responsible Children's Marketing Initiative (RCMI), which is managed by the Australian Food & Grocery Council and covers products found in retail outlets. Companies that have signed up to the initiative commit to: only advertising healthier choices to children and encouraging a healthy lifestyle through good diet and physical activity; not paying for or seeking product placement television programs, editorial content or interactive games aimed at children, unless the product is a healthier choice; not advertising and marketing to children in Australian schools unless they are asked to by those schools.
[Source 2015][More on Irresponsible Marketing] |
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| Unilever | ||||
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The Forest 500 identifies, ranks, and tracks the governments, companies and financial institutions worldwide that together could virtually eradicate tropical deforestation. Rankings are based on their public policies and commitments and potential impacts on tropical forests in the context of forest risk commodities (palm oil, soya, beef, leather, timber, and pulp and paper). This company received a score of 5/5.
[Source 2016][More on Forests]
This company received a score of 9 out of a possible total of 9 in the WWF Palm Oil Buyers' Scorecard 2016, which rates companies on what they are - and aren't - doing to prevent the negative environmental and social impacts of palm oil production.
[Source 2016][More on Palm Oil]
Ethical Consumer has ranked companies' practices and policies in relation to their palm oil sourcing for the Rainforest Foundation/Ethical Consumer palm oil campaign. This company received a 'green' rating.
[Source 2016][More on Palm Oil]
In their 2017 report 'Feeding Ourselves Thirsty', Ceres looks at how food sector companies are responding to water risks. 42 companies were assessed on a 0-100 point basis across four categories of water management: governance and strategy, direct operations, manufacturing supply chain and agricultural supply chain. This company received a score of 73/100.
[Source 2017][More on Habitats]
The Union of Concerned Scientists' 2015 Palm Oil Scorecard scores America's top brands on their commitments to use deforestation-free palm oil. This company received a score of 88.4/100, signifying strong commitment.
[Source 2015][More on Palm Oil]
The Access to Nutrition Index (ATNI) is a global initiative that evaluates the world's largest food and beverage manufacturers on their policies, practices and performance related to undernutrition and obesity. Of the 22 companies ranked this company came 1st.
[Source 2016][More on Product Safety]
The 2017 Corporate Human Rights Benchmark assessed 98 of the largest publicly traded companies in the world from the Agricultural Products, Apparel and Extractives sectors on 100 human rights indicators. This company's score was in the 50-59 band range. The overall average score was 28.7%.
[Source 2017][More on Human Rights]
The 2016 Business Benchmark on Farm Animal Welfare (BBFAW) report ranks global food companies on how they are managing and reporting their farm animal welfare policies and practices. This company appeared in tier 2, "Integral to Business Strategy", with tier 1 being the best, and tier 6 the worst.
[Source 2017][More on Animal Rights]
This company received a score of 10 out of a possible total of 24 in the WWF Soy Scorecard 2016, which rates companies on their use of responsible soy, grown without damaging the environment and harming people.
[Source 2016][More on Forests]
In 2016 Greenpeace East Asia ranked the world's 30 biggest personal care companies on their commitment to eliminating microbeads from their personal care products. The scorecard was based on four main criteria: commitment & transparency, definition, deadline and global application. This company ranked joint second. Microbeads are not retained by wastewater treatment and end up in the ocean where they are a threat to the marine environment.
[Source 2016][More on Oceans]
The Forest Footprint Disclosure Project engages with private sector companies to ask them to disclose their current understanding of their 'forest footprint' based on exposure to five key commodities - soy, palm oil, timber, cattle products and biofuels - in their operations and/or their supply chains. All of these commodities have the potential to be sourced from recently deforested land. This company was named as the Packaged Foods & Meats sector joint leader (with Marfrig Goup) in the FFD 2012 annual review.
[Source 2012][More on Forests]
This company is listed as having best practice on a report card on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality in corporate America.
[Source 2017][More on Workers Rights]
In Feb 2011 Unilever became the first major food manufacturer to announce that it will switch to 100% cage-free eggs for all products it produces worldwide.
[Source 2011][More on Factory Farming]
Oxfam's 2016 Behind the Brands Scorecard assesses the agricultural sourcing policies of the world's 10 largest food and beverage companies. It exclusively focuses on publicly available information that relates to the policies of these companies on their sourcing of agricultural commodities from developing countries. This company scored 74% (fair).
[Source 2016][More on Governance]
The Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World list is an extensive data-driven corporate sustainability assessment. The ranked companies are leaders in the field of a sustainable business approach. The efficiency of a company's energy, water, CO2 and waste management is measured in relation to its total sales volume. The disclosure of that information is a pre-condition for the assessment. This company ranked #47 in the 2016 Global 100.
[Source 2016][More on Sustainability Reporting]
Deloitte developed a Zero Impact Growth Monitor that was used in 2012 to assess and rank 65 different companies' attempts to become more sustainable. Six companies reached the "Ecosystem" level: Puma, Nike, Nestle, Natura, Unilever and Ricoh. These pioneering companies have not only set measurable and ambitious mid- to long-term targets (beyond 2020), but have also embedded their sub-policies in a holistic strategic vision of their attempt to minimize their negative environmental and societal impacts.
[Source 2012][More on Governance] |
This 2011 report by the Ecologist reveals how the Kericho tea estate in Kenya,
operated by Unilever, is at the centre of controversy over allegations of 'rampant' discrimination and sexual harassment of women, poor housing conditions, casualisation of labour, violations of employment regulations and low wages. [Source 2011][More on Workers Rights]
This 2011 report by SOMO and ICN reveals workers picking tea for Unilever in India and Kenya are subject to precarious working conditions and labor rights violations, even though this tea carries the Rainforest Alliance certificate.
[Source 2011][More on Workers Rights]
A 2015 investigation by the BBC has found workers on Indian tea plantations who pick tea for this company are paid less than £2 per day and live in inhuman conditions. Living and working conditions are so bad, and wages so low, that tea workers and their families are left malnourished and vulnerable to fatal illnesses. There was also a disregard for health and safety, with workers spraying chemicals without protection, and on some estates, child labour being used.
[Source 2015][More on Workers Rights]
Hundreds of workers at Unilever's Kodaikanal thermometer assembly plant in India have been exposed to mercury poisoning. The factory operators did not give its workers any protective equipment or information about the disastrous impact that mercury has on health. The factory owned by Hindustan Unilever also dumped toxic mercury around their plant, and this has not been cleaned up in the 14 years since this plant was shut down. The contamination continues to impact forests and groundwater. Campaigning organisation Jhatkaa is calling on Unilever to clean up Kodaikanal's mercury pollution and compensate the workers.
[Source 2015][More on Human Rights]
As You Sow's 2017 report, Mining the Disclosures, is a deep analysis of 206 companies' human rights performance in relation to sourcing conflict minerals from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). This company's score was below 40% (Weak).
[Source 2017][More on Human Rights]
This company appears on PETA's (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, USA) 'Companies That Do Test On Animals' list, signifying that they manufacture products that are tested on animals at some stage of development.
[Source 2018][More on Animal Testing]
This company received a score of 25/100 (retrieved 14-Feb-2018) in the Corporate Information Transparency Index (CITI), a system for evaluating supply chain practices in China, particularly in regards to environmental management and water pollution. Scores are calculated using government compliance data, online monitoring data, and third-party environmental audits, as well as trends in the environmental performance of factories in the company's supply chains.
[Source 2018][More on Habitats]
A 2016 report by Amnesty International found a range of labour rights abuses on the palm oil plantations operated by Wilmar's subsidiaries and suppliers in Indonesia. These abuses include worst forms of child labour, forced labour, discrimination against women workers, people being paid below the minimum wage, and workers suffering injuries from toxic chemicals. The report confirms that Unilever purchases palm oil from Wilmar.
[Source 2016][More on Palm Oil]
This website by German NGO Earth Link rates companies on their corporate policies against child labour, production monitoring and accusations of child labour. This company received at least one red mark, indicating poor performance in one or more of these areas.
[Source 2013][More on Human Rights]
This 2014 report by Friends of the Earth documents a tenfold increase in unregulated, unlabeled "nanofood" products on the American market since 2008. The report named this company among those with products containing unlabeled nano-ingredients. These nanomaterials differ significantly from larger particles of the same chemical composition, and new studies are adding to a growing body of scientific evidence indicating they may be more toxic to humans and the environment.
[Source 2014][More on Product Safety]
In 2016 Unilever settled a multiple class action (some 2,294 claimants in total thus far) which claimed that the company knew of the potential for scalp burns and hair loss on use of their Suave Professionals Keratin Infusion 30-Day Smoothing Kit before it was launched in 2011, but did not warn consumers. Unilever discontinued the product in May 2012, but maintained that it was safe to use, and did not disclose reports of hair loss and scalp burns. The company has created a US$10,250,000 fund for the victims.
[Source 2016][More on Product Safety]
German NGO Rainforest Rescue launched a campaign against Unilever in August 2011. Unilever is one of world's largest buyers of palm oil. One of its major suppliers, Wilmar, is notorious for illegal logging and human rights violations, and has been criticised for hiring a paramilitary combat unit in Sumatra, Indonesia to intimidate indigenous people and peasants, destroy their homes and drive them off their land in order develop giant palm oil plantations.
[Source 2011][More on Human Rights]
In March 2011 Kraft Foods, Unilever and Dr. Oetker were fined US$53.2m for illegally sharing 'competition-relevant information' by German competition authorities.
[Source 2011][More on Governance]
This company scores Ethical Consumer's worst rating for the likely use of tax avoidance strategies, and has at least two high risk subsidiaries in tax havens.
[Source 2016][More on Finance]
This company received a score of 42.9/100 in the Newsweek Green Ranking 2017, which ranks the world's largest publicly traded companies on eight indicators covering energy, greenhouse gases, water, waste, fines and penalties, linking executive pay to sustainability targets, board-level committee oversight of environmental issues and third-party audits. Ranking methodology by Corporate Knights and HIP Investor.
[Source 2017][More on Sustainability Reporting]
Consumer goods giants Unilever and Procter & Gamble were fined 315.2 million euros ($A436 million) by EU regulators in Apr 2011 for fixing washing powder prices in eight EU countries.
[Source 2011][More on Governance]
In Dec 2014 this company and 12 other consumer goods firms were fined a total of 951m euros by the French competition watchdog for price fixing in supermarkets. The regulator said the companies colluded on price increases between 2003 and 2006. Unilever received the second largest fine of 172.5m euros.
[Source 2014][More on Governance]
In Dec 2017 Italy's antitrust agency fined Unilever 60 million euros for abusing its dominant position in the country's ice cream market through its Algida brand.
[Source 2017][More on Governance] |
This company uses microbeads in some of its personal care products. These particles are not retained by wastewater treatment so end up in the ocean. While microbeads aren't thought to be a health hazard to consumers, they are a threat to the marine environment.
[Source 2014][More on Oceans]
This company has products rated RED in the Centre for Food Safety's True Food Shopper's Guide (USA). Products on the RED list contain ingredients that come from the most common GE crops (corn, soy, canola, cotton). Companies with products on this list have confirmed that their products may have or are likely to be made with GE ingredients, or have not denied using GE foods when given the opportunity to do so.
[Source 2013][More on Genetic Engineering]
Friends of the Earth's 2014 report "Tiny Ingredients, Big Risks" names this company as one of over 200 transnational food companies engaged in nanotechnology research and development, and on their way to commercializing products. New studies are adding to a growing body of scientific evidence indicating nanomaterials may be toxic to humans and the environment.
[Source 2014][More on Product Safety]
Skin Deep is an online safety guide to cosmetics and personal care products and their potential hazards and health concerns, with over 69,000 products rated from 1 (low hazard) to 10 (high hazard).
[Source 2016][More on Product Safety]
Unilever has committed to sourcing 75 per cent of its paper and board packaging from sustainably managed forests or from recycled material by 2015, rising to 100 per cent by 2020.
[Source 2010][More on Forests]
Thanks to the staggering public support for Greenpeace's Dove campaign in April 2008, Unilever has now agreed to play their part in saving the Paradise Forests of South East Asia. As the biggest single buyer of palm oil in the world, Unilever has a special responsibility to help clean up the industry that's behind so much forest destruction.
[Source x][More on Palm Oil]
The Female FTSE Board Report 2015 examines the percentage of women on the UK's FTSE 100 boards of directors. This company was one of 41 in the FTSE 100 with at least 25% female directors. Unilever was in 8th place with 35.7%.
[Source 2015][More on Workers Rights]
Compassion in World Farming is a UK-based organisation which works with the European food industry to encourage and reward commitment, transparency, performance and innovation in the field of animal welfare. This company won their Good Egg Award in 2008 for converting their flagship mayonnaise brands Amore, Hellmans and Calve, to use free-range eggs only across the EU.
[Source 2008][More on Animal Rights]
This company is a member of How2Recycle. The How2Recycle Label is a voluntary, standardized labeling system that clearly communicates recycling instructions to the public. It involves a coalition of forward thinking brands who want their packaging to be recycled and are empowering consumers through smart packaging labels. Companies must be a member of the program to use the How2Recycle Label.
[Source 2017][More on Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives]
This company is a member of the Sustainable Agriculture Initiative (SAI) Platform, the main food industry initiative supporting the development of sustainable agriculture worldwide. Created by Nestle, Unilever and Danone in 2002, the SAI Platform is a non-profit organization to facilitate sharing, at precompetitive level, of knowledge and initiatives to support the development and implementation of sustainable agriculture practices involving the different stakeholders of the food chain.
[Source 2014][More on Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives]
This company is a member of The Sustainability Consortium, an organization of diverse global participants that work collaboratively to build a scientific foundation that drives innovation to improve consumer product sustainability. They develop transparent methodologies, tools, and strategies to drive a new generation of products and supply networks that address environmental, social, and economic imperatives.
[Source 2015][More on Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives]
This company is a Bronze Member of the Sustainable Brands Network, the leading peer to peer, learning and networking group designed to support brands in meeting their sustainability goals and ultimately become those leaders of the next sustainable economy.
[Source 2018][More on Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives]
The United Nations Global Compact asks companies to embrace, support and enact, within their sphere of influence, a set of 10 values in the areas of human rights, labour standards, the environment, and anti-corruption. However it's non-binding nature has been widely criticised, and many signatory corporations continue to violate the Compact's values.
[Source x][More on Sustainability Reporting]
This company is a member of Bonsucro - Better Sugar Cane Initiative, a global non-profit, multi-stakeholder organisation fostering the sustainability of the sugarcane sector through its leading metric-based certification scheme and its support for continuous improvement for members.
[Source 2017][More on Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives]
The Ethical Tea Partnership was formed in 1997 when a number of major tea companies committed to working together to improve the social and environmental conditions in their supply chains.
[Source 2017][More on Sustainability Reporting]
In 2016 Greenpeace published a report on the progress towards zero deforestation in the palm oil supply chains of several multinational companies. Companies were assessed on three criteria: responsible sourcing, transparency and industry reform. This company was rated as 'getting there'.
[Source 2016][More on Palm Oil]
This 2013 Oxfam report is a study of labour issues in Unilever's Vietnam operations and supply chain. The report, based on research in Vietnam, explores the reality on the ground in Unilever's operations and wider supply chain, and compares the findings with the company's high-level policy commitments. Unusually, the company co-operated fully with the study, providing access to its staff, operations, data and suppliers.
[Source 2013][More on Workers Rights]
Rank a Brand searches the websites of brands for the answers to carefully targeted questions. From this they calculate sustainability scores based on the themes of environment, climate, labor issues, and transparency. Brands owned by this company received a 'C'.
[Source 2017][More on Sustainability Reporting]
Green America's Responsible Shopper provides details about the corporate responsibility records of well-known companies. Follow the link to see this company's profile. [Last updated 2009]
[Source 2009] |
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Company Details
| Company Structure | Wholly-owned subsidiary |
| # Employees | 300+ |
Contact Details
| Address | 69 Salmon St, Port Melbourne, VIC, 3207, Australia |
| Phone | 03 8698 0600 |
| Fax | 03 8698 0670 |
| reception@t2tea.com | |
| Website | www.t2tea.com |
Products / Brands
T2 Tea|
T2 Tea |
