Apple’s Commitment to Responsible Sourcing
9.28.16
Apple is deeply committed to the responsible sourcing of materials that go into our products. We
work to safeguard the well-being of people involved in our supply chain, to protect the places
where these materials are found, and to ensure that the sale of minerals does not finance armed
conflict.
Apple’s mission is to leave the world better than we found it — through our products and our
actions. In some cases that means making the difficult choice to stay and work in regions facing
some of the most challenging political, economic, and environmental problems in the world so that
we can make a difference. That’s the reason we’re focused on leading change in our industry and
partnering closely with groups on the ground to improve conditions in countries like Indonesia and
the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
We’re proud that our responsible sourcing program is one of the most robust in the world. It
has grown to include 40 materials such as tin, tantalum, tungsten, and gold, which have been
designated as “conflict minerals”; in 2014 we added cobalt.
Our program
To help mining communities and protect the environment we must first understand where the
materials in our supply chain come from. In 2010, we began mapping our supply chain for tin,
tantalum, tungsten, and gold down to the mine level, identifying labor and environmental risks,
and working with key stakeholders, suppliers, and governments to proactively address and help
solve existing issues.
We were one of the first companies to map our supply chain, and the first to transparently list the
smelters that we do business with. We could easily have limited our supply chain to smelters that
agreed to a third-party audit and declared our products “conflict free,” but that would do nothing to
help combat the real problem. Instead, we chose to stay engaged, go to the broadest possible list
of hundreds of smelters, and work closely with them to develop responsible sources. We wanted to
improve the entire base, not just take the easiest path forward.
In December 2015, after five years of devoted effort and due diligence, 100 percent of the identified
smelters and refiners in Apple’s broad supply chain — nearly 250 smelters and refiners for tin,
tantalum, tungsten, and gold — were participating in an independent third-party conflict minerals
audit program.
Our work goes beyond compliance at the smelter level and we are actively engaged directly with
mining companies. We’ve developed stronger standards and are working to design a consistent
third-party audit process across the mining industry.
Our team has spent thousands of hours on the ground in the DRC and surrounding areas
identifying risk and following up on human rights concerns. We have worked with suppliers, local
miners, traders, and civil society leaders, international NGOs, Tetra Tech (USAID implementing
partner), and DRC government mining officials to drive responsible sourcing practices and protect
human rights.
