Ethical Trade Audit

SMETA stands for the Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit. It is the most widely used social-audit format in the world, developed by Sedex (the Supplier Ethical Data Exchange) so that a supplier's working conditions and business practices can be assessed once, in a consistent way, and shared with many customers instead of being re-audited over and over.

The single most important thing to understand about SMETA is what it is and is not. SMETA is an audit methodology, not a certification. There is no SMETA certificate and no pass or fail grade. What a SMETA audit produces is a factual report of what the auditor observed, together with a corrective action plan that records any issues found and tracks how they are put right. The results are uploaded to the Sedex platform, where you control which of your customers can see them. So the deliverable is transparency and evidence, not a badge on the wall.

SMETA is built on a recognized ethical-trade framework, drawing on the ETI Base Code and applicable local law, so that different auditors in different places are measuring against the same expectations. It comes in a two-pillar version, covering labour standards and health and safety, and a fuller four-pillar version that adds environment and business ethics. Because it is a shared, non-proprietary format, one SMETA audit can satisfy many buyers at once, which is exactly why so many retailers and brands ask for it.

SMETA fits any organization whose customers want independent evidence that it operates ethically and treats its workers fairly, and that would rather satisfy many of those customers with one shared audit than face a different audit for each. It is especially common wherever large retailers and brands manage the ethical performance of their supply base. Typical candidates include:

• Manufacturers and factories supplying retailers and consumer brands that require ethical-trade assurance
• Food, agriculture and produce suppliers whose buyers expect verified labour and safety standards
• Textile, apparel and footwear producers under scrutiny for working conditions
• Packaging, components and general merchandise suppliers serving Sedex-member customers
• Multi-site and contract producers who want one audit format recognized by many buyers rather than many overlapping audits

A useful rule of thumb: if a customer has asked you to complete a SMETA audit, or to share results on Sedex, then you need one, and you need it to go well. Because SMETA is the common currency of ethical trade, doing one credible audit often clears the requirement for several buyers at once. Working out which pillars you need and how wide the scope should run is one of the first things we settle together.

A SMETA audit examines how your organization actually treats its people and conducts its business, tested against the ETI Base Code and local law and backed by records, site observation and worker interviews. Depending on whether you do the two-pillar or four-pillar version, it looks at:

• Labour standards, including the prohibition of child and forced labour, freedom of association, working hours, wages and benefits, and freedom from discrimination
• Health and safety, covering safe working conditions, equipment, hazard control, and worker welfare facilities
• Environment (in the four-pillar version), looking at how the site manages its environmental responsibilities
• Business ethics (in the four-pillar version), covering anti-corruption and responsible business conduct
• Management systems and entitlement to work, checking that the site has the processes and records to keep these standards in place

The audit is carried out by an approved audit firm and produces two key documents: a report describing what was found, and a corrective action plan report that lists any non-compliances and tracks their resolution. Both are shared on the Sedex platform under your control. Because there is no certificate, the value lies entirely in a clean, well-evidenced report and in closing out any findings quickly, which is precisely where good preparation pays off.

The plainest reason is that a customer is asking for it, and without it you are shut out of that business. Ethical-sourcing requirements have moved from the margins to the mainstream, and for a growing number of retailers and brands a current SMETA report shared on Sedex is simply a condition of being a supplier. Doing one credible audit lets you meet that condition, and because the format is shared, it often satisfies several buyers at once instead of forcing you through a separate audit for each.

Beyond opening the door, a SMETA audit gives you an honest, independent read on how your site really treats its people and runs its business. Handled well, it surfaces issues before a customer's own auditor does, protects you from the reputational damage that ethical failures cause, and gives your buyers the transparency they increasingly demand. The corrective action process also drives genuine improvement, safer conditions, cleaner records, better practice, rather than a one-off tick. In a market where responsible sourcing is fast becoming non-negotiable, a strong SMETA result is a real competitive advantage.

For more than 30 years we have helped organizations meet demanding independent assessments and come through them cleanly. More than 900 organizations have worked with us to prepare for and pass third-party audits, and our track record of getting clients through the first time is why buyers trust the work we do. Because SMETA is an audit rather than a certification, our job is to get you genuinely ready so the audit report is clean and any findings are minor and quickly closed.

Our proven 10-Step Approach adapts naturally to audit preparation. We start by confirming which SMETA version and scope your customers actually require, then run a gap assessment against the ETI Base Code and local law to show exactly where you stand. From there we help you put right what needs fixing, tighten your labour, health-and-safety, environmental and ethics practices and the records that evidence them, train your people on what the audit will look for, and run a mock audit so there are no surprises on the day. We work alongside your team throughout and develop the person who will own ethical trade internally, so you stay ready for the next audit cycle without starting from scratch.

And we keep it lean. Our single-level documentation stays under 200 pages, one clear, usable level rather than the four-tier stack of manuals other consultants leave behind. For a social audit, where auditors care about real conditions and honest records far more than thick manuals, that focus on practice over paperwork is exactly what produces a clean report.

• Thinking SMETA is a certificate. It is an audit, with a report and a corrective action plan, not a pass or fail badge. We prepare you for what the audit actually assesses.
• Working-hours and wage gaps. Incomplete or inconsistent records on hours and pay are among the most common findings. We get them straight before the audit.
• The wrong pillars or scope. Doing a two-pillar audit when a buyer needs four, or missing a site. We match the audit to what your customers require.
• Health-and-safety basics. Blocked exits, missing risk assessments and weak controls trip up otherwise good sites. We close these before the auditor walks the floor.
• Unmanaged corrective actions. Findings that sit open on Sedex hurt you with buyers. We build the discipline to close them promptly.
• No internal owner. Ethical trade needs someone accountable. We develop that person so you stay ready for the next cycle.