Daily Magazine

In a successful proof of concept in Indonesia, Unilever applied GreenToken to sustainably source more than 188,000 tons of oil palm fruit. SAP and Unilever are using a pilot of the GreenToken by SAP solution to further increase traceability and transparency in Unilever’s global palm oil supply chain. The tool enabled Golden Agri-Resources and other suppliers from whom Unilever sources to create tokens that mirror the material flow of the palm oil throughout the supply chain and capture the unique attributes linked to the oil’s origin.

Via EcoVadis, Ricard Lloria

The supply chain crisis has prompted many businesses to focus urgently on sustainable sourcing. It’s a good idea, but they should go even further by integrating their overall environment, social and governance (ESG) strategies into their sourcing plans. 

Indeed, two-thirds of the average company’s ESG footprint lies with suppliers, according to McKinsey. The cost of failure — even at multiple levels down the supply chain — can be catastrophic to a firm’s reputation. Major incidents have brought widespread attention and spurred enterprises worldwide to double down on sustainable procurement.

At the same time, investor expectations, along with increased regulatory oversight requirements — such as the German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act and the UK Modern Slavery Act — are compelling businesses to establish and execute ESG strategies and uphold high ethical standards.

Via EcoVadis, Ricard Lloria

Credibility and visibility in the procurement process are no easy feats. Challenges abound, and no CPG company wants to see their brand’s name in the newspaper because their supplier has done something wrong. 

This was the motivation behind cheese-manufacturing company Bel Brands USA’s decision to align with automated sourcing platform Bid Ops, Jean-Michel dos Remedios, head of procurement, sourcing, and supplier development at Bel Brands, tells CGT. 

Bel Brands USA — maker of cheeses Babybel, The Laughing Cow, Boursin, and more — was looking to solve a major problem. With $285 million in direct and indirect material spend across 3,500 suppliers, they wanted to cut costs and increase their sourcing efficiency, which was getting too difficult to manage.

“We started to use Bid Ops as a resourcing tool to go faster on refuse and reuse, and sourcing events,” says dos Remedios, who did not see the value in previous sourcing investments due to their lack of visibility.

Via EcoVadis, Ricard Lloria