Supply Chain Responsibility - Progress & Metrics - Altria

Our business partners are key to our companies' success. Across the Altria family of companies, we work to build relationships with suppliers and to promote actions consistent with our Mission and Values.

Each day Altria’s companies work with thousands of businesses that help our companies manufacture and market their products. It is important to us that our partners understand that we care about both the business results and how they are achieved.

Progress & Metrics

STRATEGIC SUPPLIER MANAGEMENT & QUALITY

  • Across our tobacco companies, one percent of our suppliers are designated as strategic, representing over $1 billion in total spending. The majority of these strategic suppliers receive performance reviews at least once a year.
  • In 2011, 94 percent of packaging and product materials suppliers to Altria’s tobacco companies achieved quality scores above 80 (out of 100).

SOCIAL COMPLIANCE AUDITS

Altria’s tobacco companies monitor suppliers’ adherence to specific elements of the Supplier Code of Conduct through social compliance assessments (SCAs) conducted by a third party. The following suppliers’ facilities are assessed on a rotational basis based on a global social risk index:

  • Custom Marketing Incentive Items supplier factories
  • Direct Product and Packaging Materials supplier factories
  • International Leaf Merchants’ processing facilities

In 2011, SCAs were conducted in more than 10 countries including: China, India, Thailand, Malawi and Guatemala. Over 90 percent of International Leaf Merchants’ processing facilities, as well as all new Custom Marketing Incentive Item and Direct Product and Packaging Material suppliers were assessed in 2011.

Factories found to have material issues are placed in a structured remediation process that involves corrective action plans, follow-up site visits by Altria employees or re-inspections by third-party assessors.

We continue to work with our suppliers to improve their management plans relating to key social compliance areas.

 

SUPPLIER DIVERSITY DEVELOPMENT

  • In 2011, spending with minority-owned and women-owned businesses accounted for 9.7 percent of total purchases across Altria’s companies participating in the Supplier Diversity Development process.
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