GEORGE Clooney has pledged that “work will be done” after an investigation found the Nespresso coffee beans he advertises ‘are picked by child labourers’. 

The Hollywood star, who reportedly earned £31 million as an ambassador for the company, said he is "saddened" after a probe found youngsters working eight-hour days on plantations for less than £5.

Channel 4's 'Dispatches' were given access to farms in Guatemala, the world's tenth largest coffee producer, where they found children doing heavy manual labour and picking coffee beans.

The Swiss coffee giant has seen huge global success with its stylish coffee machines and pods, but does not publicly list its supplier farms.

It advertises its products as ethically sourced, from countries including Brazil, Colombia and Costa Rica.

Clooney, 58, joined Nespresso's Sustainability Advisory Board in 2013 and has represented the company for years.

The Oscar-winning filmmaker said in a statement that "work will be done" in response to the shocking relevations.

He said: "I was surprised and saddened to see this story. Clearly this board and this company still have work to do. And that work will be done"

"Having grown up working on a tobacco farm from the time I was 12 I'm uniquely aware of the complex issues regarding farming and child labour."

But Clooney also insisted he remained "enormously proud" of the work done by Nespresso through their sustainability schemes.

He added: "I'm enormously proud of the success of their efforts. They've improved the lives and livelihoods of thousands of farms all around the world."

In a statement, Nespresso CEO Guillaume Le Cunff said the company had "zero tolerance" of child labour and promised the company would investigate.

He said: "'Nespresso has zero tolerance of child labour. It is unacceptable. Where there are claims that our high standards are not met, we act immediately"

"The media outlet refused to provide us with the details of the farms so that we could confirm whether they supplied Nespresso and immediately address these allegations. However, we have launched a thorough investigation and taken a number of actions"

"First and foremost, we have immediately stopped purchases of coffee from all farms in the region and we will not resume purchases until we are able to investigate and be assured that child labour is not being used."

The Sun Online has reached out to George Clooney and Nespresso for further comment.

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