A summary from Sweden’s regions reveals a striking result: of the eighteen suppliers audited in 2025 – across categories including wound care products, surgical instruments and food – only six could demonstrate a continuous process for identifying and reducing risks to human rights and the environment. That is two thirds falling short of what is contractually required.
The most common gap was the absence of systematic risk analysis. Without it, suppliers cannot identify, let alone address, serious problems such as forced labour or hazardous chemical use in the production of their products.
The regions are tightening the rules
The response to these results is not a softer approach. Sweden’s regions are shortening timelines for corrective action plans after audit findings – standardising re-audit intervals to six months, down from previously open-ended timelines. Suppliers will increasingly be required to cover the cost of re-audits themselves. And where action plans are not followed, the regions can seek penalties or take legal action.
This matters beyond Sweden. Public procurement across the Nordic countries – and across Europe – covers healthcare, construction, IT, food, medical equipment and more. According to OECD data, healthcare alone accounts for around 32% of public procurement in OECD countries. The scale of what is bought through public contracts, and the depth of the supply chains behind those purchases, means that due diligence requirements in procurement is a broad concern.
What the EU regulatory shift means for suppliers
At the same time, the regulatory landscape is changing. The Omnibus I package has amended key EU frameworks – CSRD, ESRS, CSDDD – and many suppliers are trying to understand:
→ what is still required
→ what information contracting authorities will ask for
→ and how reporting obligations and due diligence requirements interact in practice
These are exactly the questions we will address in a webinar on 9 June at 09.00 CEST, bringing together Sweden’s regions and Nordic colleagues from Norway, Denmark, Iceland and Finland – with Sandra Atler from Enact as speaker and Pauline Göthberg, National Coordinator for Sustainable Public Procurement in the Swedish Regions, as moderator.
If your organisation supplies to public buyers – or works with suppliers that do – this session is designed to give you clarity on what is expected and how to meet it.