Organization: Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Inc.

Year: 2015

Whereas: Whereas: Corporate impacts on human rights are increasingly understood to be relevant to business success and material to investors seeking assurance that human rights concerns are understood and addressed at the highest level of corporations. The Board of Directors has ultimate oversight of long-term corporate strategy, brand reputation, and the overall welfare of the company, all of which may be affected by human rights issues. Human rights violations are common in global sugarcane production. In major sugar-producing countries, such as Brazil, Columbia, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, the Philippines, and Thailand, the U.S. Department of Labor has identified evidence of child labor and forced labor contributing to sugar production. According to Oxfam, land tenure risk, which arises where corporate land claims coincide with indigenous claims on the same territory, is a prevalent feature of large-scale land acquisitions for the development of agricultural commodities, including sugarcane. Land tenure risk may cause companies to face domestic and international legal disputes, operational disruption, and reputational damage. Companies in Dr Pepper Snapple Group's industry peer group have demonstrated comprehensive approaches to addressing human rights risks in their commodity supply chains. Recognizing potential human rights violations in the sugar supply chain, both the Coca-Cola Company and PepsiCo Inc. have adopted policies and procedures to evaluate human rights risk and to prevent land grabs. By 2020, Coca-Cola has committed to completing human rights assessments of the top sixteen countries from which it sources sugar. As a producer of sugar-sweetened flavored soft drinks and non-carbonated beverages, Dr Pepper Snapple Group faces particular risks related to human rights impacts in its sugar supply chain. The company lists cane sugar as an ingredient or possible ingredient in its Dr Pepper, 7UP, A&W, Snapple, and Nantucket Nectars product lines. Unlike key peers, Dr Pepper Snapple Group has not disclosed the countries from which it sources sugar, nor has the company disclosed its efforts to ensure that the sugar in its products is not linked with violations of labor rights and land tenure rights at the farm level. Further, the company has not disclosed its approaches to mitigating the operating and reputational risks across its high-impact commodity supply chains and beyond first-tier suppliers.

Resolved: Resolved: Shareholders request that the Board of Directors prepare a public report, at reasonable cost and omitting proprietary information, by December 1, 2015, describing how the Board and company management identify, analyze, and oversee human rights risks related to the company's sugar supply chain, how they mitigate these risks, and how they incorporate risk assessment results into company policies and decision-making.