4 _279 2023 UNIVERSAL REGISTRATION DOCUMENT_MICHELIN 4 NON-FINANCIAL STATEMENT Sustainable Development Report Mediation with suppliers Since 2012, suppliers can use the Purchasing Department website to contact the customer-supplier relations mediator with respect to any alleged or observed violation of the Michelin Purchasing Principles. The mediator intervenes only when suppliers have failed to resolve the issue with their usual contacts in the Group. Over the 2017-2023 period, suppliers have requested mediation at most twice per year. These cases generally concerned invoice payment problems or disputes, which were quickly resolved by the mediator. 4.1.4.2 c) A dedicated approach for natural rubber Paying special attention to natural rubber suppliers As one of the world’s leading purchasers of natural rubber, a critical raw material in tire manufacturing, Michelin is especially attentive to its rubber-tree farming upstream, and is committed to responsible, sustainable management of natural rubber production. Of the 30 million people who depend on rubber-tree farming for a living worldwide, six million are village smallholders, who produce over 85% of the world’s output on small farms generally covering less than four hectares. In 2023, for the second year running, Michelin was ranked No. 1 in the tiremaker category by SPOTT, a natural rubber ESG disclosure platform, with a score of 80% (No. 2 in the general natural rubber category). The score demonstrates that Michelin leads the global tire industry in sustainability disclosure and performance. Partnering with the WWF and nurturing dialogue with civil society To preserve rubber and manage its impacts, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Michelin have been working together since 2015 to transform the natural rubber market by instilling more sustainable practices across the entire value chain. At the same time, Michelin is continuing to consult regularly with both stakeholders and the leading civil society organizations involved in these issues. Every two years, for example, the Group brings together civil society organizations to report on the progress made across the natural rubber value chain and to discuss possible pathways to further improvement. The last information and consultation meeting was held in ClermontFerrand in November 2022. In addition to these biennial forums, Michelin regularly works with NGOs, researchers, academics and government agencies on natural rubber sustainability issues. In addition, the Group is involved in several think tanks exploring ways to prevent imported deforestation. In France, it is actively engaged in the talks being led by the French Ministry for the Ecological and Inclusive Transition to define a strategy to counter imported deforestation (see also section 4.1.2.5 a). Sustainable natural rubber policy In 2015, Michelin was the first tire manufacturer to publish a commitment to sustainable, responsible natural rubber production and procurement. The Sustainable Natural Rubber Policy was updated in 2021 and has been approved by the GPSNR platform(1). Drafted with input from environmental and human rights NGOs and other stakeholders, the Sustainable Natural Rubber Policy is now a contractual reference document for Group suppliers. Downloadable from the Michelin purchasing website(2), the policy precisely defines the conditions for farming natural rubber, both in terms of the environment (zero deforestation, protection and preservation of peatlands, High Conservation Value areas and High Carbon Stock areas), and in terms of social responsibility and human rights (working conditions, free, prior and informed consent of the local communities, etc.). Michelin expects every stakeholder across the supply chain to embrace responsible social, environmental and governance practices, so as to maintain rubber tree farming in a virtuous cycle of progress. (1) The Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber (GPSNR). (2) https://purchasing.michelin.com/en/sustainable-natural-rubber-policy/.
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