The Tea Sector Model Clauses (TMCs) are designed to help buyers, relevant intermediaries, and producers in the tea sector implement their commitment to responsible business conduct through responsible contracting. The Framing Memo serves as an accompanying guide to and complements the implementation of the TMCs.
 

The Responsible Contracting Project (RCP) prepared the TMCs in conjunction with members of the Ethical Tea Partnership (ETP) and with input from civil society partners. The clauses are intended to provide guiding principles to ETP members and other actors operating across the tea sector, in particular, the growing number of tea enterprises that seek to distinguish themselves as responsible actors. 

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Contracts serve as an important mechanism for allocating rights and responsibilities between business partners – typically a buyer and supplier. However, traditional contracting models in the tea sector often place the responsibility for mitigating human rights and environmental impacts directly on tea gardens, ignoring the reality on the ground and the economic pressures buyers can exert on producers.

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The TMCs and the guidance in the Framing Memo will help buyers, suppliers, and their partners align with evolving legal standards on human rights and environmental due diligence (HREDD). While companies cannot expect to meet the requirements in new regulations simply by adding clauses to their contracts, responsible contracts are a critical component of an effective due diligence process and should be designed to strengthen the foundation for responsible business conduct.