Since January 2023, the German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act — or LkSG, as it is now generally abbreviated — has reshaped the landscape of corporate accountability for firms selling into the German market. For many small and medium-sized enterprises, the new obligations introduced by this law have added a layer of complexity that, to […]
Since the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act came into effect in June 2022, the conversation around trade compliance, particularly in relation to China’s Xinjiang region, has shifted in ways that, frankly, not all businesses anticipated. The law establishes a rebuttable presumption — in plain terms, it assumes that goods made wholly or in part in […]
The 2021 amendments to Japan’s Warehouse Act marked an important, if not inevitable, shift in how the country approaches food supply chain transparency, particularly in the grain sector. Although warehouse regulation has historically been something of a backstage affair—important, yes, but rarely the subject of policy debates—the growing global focus on food security, digital traceability, […]
The EU Deforestation Regulation, or EUDR as it’s now widely referred to, came into force at the end of 2023. Since then, the business community — or, to be more precise, those firms involved in sourcing or trading commodities like soy, beef, palm oil, timber, cocoa, and coffee — has been contending with a regulatory […]
The UK’s Modern Slavery Amendment Act (2024), in force since January, brings a notable shift in how businesses are expected to manage modern slavery risks in their operations and supply chains. While the 2015 Act was largely about disclosure, the amendment pushes firms toward more active due diligence — a move that, depending on one’s […]
US Executive Order 14030, signed by President Biden in May 2022, represents a landmark in integrating climate considerations into federal procurement and financial systems. The Executive Order directs federal agencies to assess and mitigate climate-related financial risks, including those embedded in government supply chains. For US federal contractors, this mandate creates both an obligation and […]
Australia’s 2024 review of the Modern Slavery Act 2018, in force since January 2019, represents a significant evolution in the nation’s approach to combating forced labor within supply chains. The review tightened reporting thresholds by lowering the minimum consolidated revenue for mandatory reporting from AU$100 million to AU$50 million, substantially increasing the number of businesses […]
The EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) entered its pilot phase in October 2023, marking a transformative shift in the bloc’s climate and trade policy. Designed to complement the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS), CBAM aims to prevent carbon leakage by requiring importers of certain carbon-intensive goods to report embedded greenhouse gas emissions and, ultimately, […]
The Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) 252.204-7012 rule, effective since January 2021, represents a critical pillar of the US Department of Defense’s (DoD) efforts to secure its supply chain against cybersecurity threats. This regulation mandates that all DoD contractors and subcontractors implement controls specified in NIST Special Publication 800-171 to protect Controlled Unclassified Information […]
The 2023 amendments to the EU Machinery Regulation (Regulation 2006/42/EC) mark a significant step toward enhancing transparency and accountability in the industrial equipment sector. These updates, adopted to reflect technological advancements and evolving safety priorities, focus on improving traceability for high-risk industrial machines. Manufacturers and Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) that place such machinery on the […]
The 2022 update to the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s Conflict Minerals Rule brought much-needed clarity to the definitions of “necessary to functionality” and “necessary to production,” terms that have long caused uncertainty for electronics manufacturers and other downstream companies. These clarifications, effective January 2022, directly impact how firms determine whether tin, tantalum, tungsten, and […]
India’s new labour codes, effective January 2024, mark a transformative moment for farm sector transparency by extending formal labor protections to millions of migrant agricultural workers. The consolidation of existing labor laws into four comprehensive codes—the Code on Wages, the Industrial Relations Code, the Social Security Code, and the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions […]
Canada’s Bill C-13, known as the Child Labour Denial Amendment, took effect in February 2023 and represents a critical step in the nation’s efforts to eliminate child labor from imported supply chains. The legislation prohibits the importation of goods that are mined, manufactured, or produced wholly or in part by child labor. With increasing scrutiny […]
The 2024 updates to the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive (PPWD), originally adopted in 2018, mark a significant tightening of sustainability obligations for businesses across the European Union. With the revised directive now enforcing higher recycled content targets for packaging, manufacturers, brand owners, and importers must enhance the transparency, traceability, and reporting of their […]
The US CHIPS and Science Act, signed into law in August 2022, represents a landmark initiative to strengthen domestic semiconductor manufacturing while enhancing the security and transparency of chip supply chains. As global tensions and supply disruptions have highlighted the vulnerabilities in critical technology sectors, the CHIPS Act provides substantial federal incentives to encourage the […]
Germany’s Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (Lieferkettensorgfaltspflichtengesetz, or LkSG), effective since January 2023, marked a significant shift in corporate responsibility, requiring large firms to monitor and address human rights and environmental risks across their global supply chains. Now, two years into enforcement, clear lessons have emerged for the automotive and textile sectors—the industries most directly […]