The challenge
The demands for sustainability on the part of buyers are increasing, but in many parts of the world there is an increased risk of violations of environmental and social standards - including in organic agriculture. Inadequate local working conditions often lead to high turnover and poor employee loyalty to suppliers. In addition, resource-efficient production of raw materials and effective land management are posing increasing challenges. Careful sustainability management along the supply chain is therefore not only ecologically sensible but is also in the interest of organic producers such as Lebensbaum as it offers companies long term pay off. Through soil improvement measures, they benefit from greater reliability and ultimately higher product quality. Higher social standards lead to greater satisfaction among employees and stabilise the cooperation between cultivation partners and buyers in the long term.
Project approach
The develoPPP project, with a total budget of around 330,000 euros, aimed to (further) develop transparent and effective sustainability management along the value chain. Between 2016 and 2019, differentiated measures were implemented together with local producers for tea (Ambootia, India), coffee (Finca Irlanda, Mexico; Hacienda Cincinnati, Colombia) and spices (Sekem, Egypt), depending on the initial situation, including:
- On-site visits to suppliers and exchange of experiences with them.
- Improvement of agricultural practices, including composting, soil management, disease and pest control in India, Mexico and Colombia.
- IT-based risk scoring system for crop control (Egypt).
- Social programmes for staff retention (Colombia) and health promotion (India).
- Establishment of a training centre for soil building (India).
Ulrich Walter GmbH and project partner Soil & More Impacts contributed their expertise on sustainable supply chains in agriculture as consultants. DEG financed the measure using develoPPP funds.
Establishing environmental and social standards throughout the supply chain not only strengthens relationships with suppliers, but also ensures the quality of our products.
Results
Depending on the needs of the partner farms, sustainability management measures were newly developed or further improved. For example, optimised farming practices led to soil improvement and ensured quality standards (India, Colombia, Mexico). An IT-based risk scoring system for cultivation control was evaluated and tested at the experienced spice producer Sekem (Egypt). Social measures such as cultural and sports activities (Colombia) or health protection (India) led to lower staff turnover and absenteeism. Overall, the measures strengthened local productivity and long-term trade relations with the partner farms.
- Training centre established for biodynamic agriculture near Ambootia, India
- Tracing tool introduced for transparency and tracking at SEKEM, Egypt
develoPPP Classic
develoPPP Classic is aimed at medium-sized and large companies that want to invest sustainably in a developing or emerging country and expand their operational activities locally. Suitable projects receive technical and financial support of up to two million euros in public funding.
Project partners
