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COVID-19 Exposes Supply Chain Vulnerabilities that Cause Food Insecurity

April 25, 2020 Add Comment Edit

The cornavirus pandemic has highlighted supply chain weaknesses that are causing food shortages. As explained in an FAO report, the global pandemic is threatening supply lines leading to concerns about food insecurity. "A protracted pandemic crisis could quickly put a strain on the food supply chains, a complex web of interactions involving farmers, agricultural inputs, processing plants, shipping, retailers and more," the report said. In a March paper the U.N. Committee on World Food Security (CFS) warned that Covid-19 will cause heightened instability in global food supply. The pandemic also prompted the Food and Land Use Coalition to issue a call to action for world leaders over what they describe as a humanitarian crisis requiring urgent coordinated action.

Food shortages are already apparent around the world and according to Business Insider, food retailers may experience food shortages for 18 months or more. Food that comes from large industrial farms are especially vulnerable. The megabarns in which livestock and poultry are produced are breeding grounds for disease. Social distancing is not an option for farm workers or those that work in food processing facilities. Disease rapidly spreads in such workplaces and when these workers get sick the supply chain breaks down.

However, our current situation affords insight into the mechanics of supply chain disruptions. COVID-19 is far from over and it is certainly not the last pandemic we will face. We also know that climate change will be far more disruptive to supply chains. A warming planet interferes with food production by decreasing the fertility of soils, reducing the number of pollinators and increasing extreme weather events including droughts and floods.

As explained by Seckin Ozkul, a supply chain management expert at the University of South Florida, these disruptions help us to identify vulnerabilities. "We had seen regional, we had seen national disasters and destruction, but we had never seen a full global [disruption] at the same time — everyone shot down at the same time," Ozkul said. "So now we want to look at this so that the next time it happens we can be better prepared and we can actually take the necessary precautions so we don't see the impact as much as we see it now."

Using the lessons gleaned from this pandemic we can redesign our supply chains in ways that mitigate against the risks of disruption. One of the most important things we can do is create sustainable supply chains. To help reduce the risks associated with factory farms we can diversify the procurement of our foods so that we are not overly dependent on any one source.

Related
Building Resilience to Supply Chain Disruptions due to Climate Change
Supply Chain Sustainability Guidance and Standards
Sustainable Procurement: Environmental Social and Economic Supply Chain Considerations
How to Craft Value Out of Sustainability Focused Supply Chains
The Sustainable Supply Chain Imperative
The Supply Chain of CO2 Emissions (White Paper)
Digging In: The Nuts and Bolts of Supply Chain Sustainability (White Paper)
Sustainable Supply Chains are Profitable

Get Ready for Supply Chain Sustainability Guidance and Standards

August 23, 2016 Add Comment Edit

Sustainability is a large and expanding trend and procurement has been a major part of this trend. Efforts to adopt more sustainable supply chains have been around for years. We now have ample information to confidently make the claim that businesses practicing sustainability are leading the way forward. Procurement and supply chains are key components of sustainability.

However, a lack of standardization and guidance have made this transition difficult for some. That is rapidly changing as we have seen more guidance and now forthcoming standardization.

President Obama has launched a major initiative to reduce greenhouse gases with an executive order related to the federal government's supply chain.

As revealed in an Environmental Leader article, public sector procurement accounts for around 12 percent of GDP and 29 percent of government expenditure in OECD member countries.

ISO standards, specifically ISO 20400, Sustainable procurement – Guidance will be published in 2017.

"ISO says because sustainable procurement is a key aspect of social responsibility, ISO 20400 will complement ISO 26000, Guidance on social responsibility, by enabling organizations to contribute to sustainable development efforts by minimizing their impact on the environment, tackling human rights issues and contributing to society and the economy."

The nonprofit Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council is also developing a Sustainable Purchasing Benchmarking System consistent with the ISO 20400. Sustainable Purchasing Council provides guidance on incorporating sustainability in procurement decisions.

In 2015 SPLC released its Guidance for Leadership in Sustainable Purchasing v1.0. This guidance has been field tested in a pilot program by a number of organizations including Lockheed Martin and Office Depot. SPLC will provide third party recognition for their procurement efforts.

The SPLC has previously released five principles for sustainability leadership which includes environmental, social and economic impacts of purchasing. The SPLC also released guidelines for suppliers of products and services.

Related
Obama Signs Executive Order to Reduce GHGs in the Federal Government and Across their Supply Chain
Sustainable Procurement: Environmental Social and Economic Supply Chain Considerations
How to Craft Value Out of Sustainability Focused Supply Chains
Supply Chain Advocacy to Advance Renewable Energy: The Story of E.ON
Winners of the 2013 Green Supply Chain Awards
Sustainable Supply Chain Transparency: Strategic Analysis and Best Practices
The Sustainable Supply Chain Imperative

Webinar - Valuing Natural Capital Assets in the Supply Chain

April 07, 2014 Add Comment Edit

This Webinar will take place on Thursday, April 10th 2014, 9:00am - 10:00am PDT/12:00pm - 1:00pm EDT/ 6:00pm - 7:00pm Paris- Brussels Online Meeting.

The 21st century has seen the rise of a globally connected community and with it comes additional layers of what will need to be measured and managed for all companies to succeed. Business leaders will still focus on the basics of profit, revenue and market share, but also required is broader visibility into how natural capital assets are consumed in the supply chain to build brand and manage risk.

Natural Capital Accounting (NCA) is the process of placing a financial value on the natural capital (water, air, soil, forests, etc) consumed by a company’s business operations and considering natural resources as an essential business asset. By placing a dollar value on these assets, the cost of consuming natural resources and negative impacts can be better accounted for.

The future of the built environment and the economy depend on how we manage the diverse set of resources (natural capital) that make up all the goods and services we rely on. A large part of a company’s impact on natural capital occurs in the supply chain. Currently companies have varying degrees of visibility into their first tier suppliers but lack a comprehensive view of the natural capital assets supporting the possible tens of thousands of suppliers behind each component for every first tier supplier.

The purpose of valuing natural capital in the supply chain allows for a more whole-istic approach to make smarter, greener decisions, when it really matters. More importantly, beyond valuing natural capital, it is essential to develop tools and strategies to effectively manage the related risks and opportunities of consuming such resources throughout the value chain.

This discussion will provide an introduction to the concept of Natural Capital Accounting and address some of the following questions:

Which natural capital assets does the business impact most?
Where are these dependencies hidden within the supply chain? In which countries are these dependencies and degradation most likely taking place? What is the company’s strategy to mitigate impact and protect availability of these critical natural assets? What commodities will have greater price fluctuation? How do companies make informed decisions about which materials and suppliers to focus on first? Which materials offer the greatest potential return to the environment?

Speakers

Clinton Moloney, PwC, Managing Director
Andrew Deitz, Climate Earth, VP

Event - Responsible Sourcing Summit 2014

January 19, 2014 Add Comment Edit

Sustainable Supply Chain Transparency: Strategic Analysis and Best Practices

July 22, 2013 Add Comment Edit

Event - Sustainable Supply Chain Summit

July 21, 2013 Add Comment Edit

The 8th annual Sustainable Supply Chain Summit will take place on October 7-8, 2013, in London. Discover how to create a transparent supply chain that delivers results. Drive CR, transparency and cost efficiency down your value chain.

The event will be attended by 150 people including 25+ corporate top executives, sharing best practice and discussing the ways to address the biggest supply chain challenges in 2013.

Overview

•Make supply chain sustainability a priority throughout your value chain, by engaging internally with buyers functions, middle management through to top level decision makers
•Better external engagement: Go beyond Tier 1, develop cost-effective strategies and techniques to assess suppliers of your suppliers and achieve meaningful audits
•Get up-to-speed on human rights: introduce on-site factories training, develop effective grievance mechanisms and better health and safety in a weak institutional capacity environment
•Cost reduction and efficiency: Find out how embedding high social and environmental standards into product development and production can save you money

Key Topics 2013

•Make supply chain sustainability a priority for top level decision makers, middle management across the company; through to procurement and buyers functions
•New level of Human Rights standards and learn how to embed them into your value chain;develop on-site training and effective grievance mechanisms
•Better external engagement: Learn how to work with supplier factories to ensure data flow; move beyond Tier 1 suppliers for increased transparency and less supply chain risks
•Harness the power of capacity building in your suppliers and value chain; build cost effective programs to spread your standards down your supply chain
•Essentials on stakeholder engagement: How to deal with activist campaigners; train supplier managers to run a smarter business; develop meaningful partnerships with NGOs
•Communications about your supply chain sustainability: Make the most of your sustainability report, regain trust through a long-term communication strategy; engage consumers on your hard work in supply chain sustainability

More reasons why this is the ONLY sustainable supply chain specific event you need to attend this year:

•Exclusive insights from the top by Unilever, Sainsbury’s & Divine Chocolate: this is your chance to ask tough questions to top management from leading companies on HOW sustainability is embedded into their supply chains
•Fully participatory experience: This isn’t just another conference – we’ve banned power-point and 70% of the event’s time is now devoted to round tables and working groups, to ensure YOU are at the centre of the debate and get your questions answered.
•Cross sector learning: For a well-rounded view of your issues, you’ll hear best practices from the leaders in different industries such as apparel, FMCG, telecoms, pharmaceuticals, chemicals and more!
•High level networking opportunities: half of the audience are of director level or above – don’t miss your opportunity to network with senior corporate decision makers from across Europe, North America and Asia
•The meeting place of the year for procurement and CSR communities: your chance to learn from and network with the best from the worlds of CSR / sustainability and procurement/supply chain!

Who comes to this conference?

The show is designed for senior corporate responsibility, supply chain, sourcing and procurement executives across a variety of industries such as; FMCG, Retail, Apparel, Chemicals, Automotive, Electronics, Telecommunications, Pharmaceuticals and many more.

Some of those who have already attended our conferences in the past include H&M, Nestle, Diageo, Timberland, B&Q, Rio Tinto, BASF, P&G, Coca Cola, Arcelor Mittal - to see the full list click here!

Huge savings are availble!

•Save £250 if you book before 2nd August with corporate/ service provider passes!
•Special NGO/ Academics rates - save £750 from the full price!
•If you’re from the CSR team and want to bring along your procurement colleagues (or the other way around) - special ‘dual CSR/procurement pass’ offer saves you £700 from the full price!

An unmissable opportunity for your business

If you are looking to learn more about how to build sustainable supply chains, achieve responsible sourcing and want to meet the biggest players in the space, then this is the forum to do it.

Full details are in the brochure - so download it today and see how Sustainable Supply Chain Summit 2013 will benefit your business! Click here to get the e-brochure sent directly to your inbox now

Click here to register.

Related Articles
Sustainable Supply Chain Transparency: Strategic Analysis and Best Practices
The Sustainable Supply Chain Imperative
Survey of Executives Views on Sustainable Supply Chains
Building Resilience to Supply Chain Disruptions due to Climate Change
Introduction to Sustainable Supply Chains
Introduction to (Sustainable) Supply Chain Management
Sustainable Supply Chains
The Rise of Sustainable Supply Chains
Sustainable Supply Chains are Profitable
Case Study Illustrates the Profitability of Sustainable Supply Chains
2012 Review: Sustainable Supply Chains
Sustainable Procurement Guidelines and Procedures
The Three Tiers of Sustainability and Supply Chains
Ten Sources of Green Supply Chain Information
Five Elements of a Sustainable Supply Chain
Environmental Regulations Shaping Today's Sustainable Supply Chains
Sustainable Supply Chains and New Environmental Laws
Collaboration in Sustainable Supply Chains
The Lean Sustainable Supply Chain
Environmental Leader's Top 15 Sustainable Supply Chain Stories of 2012
Sustainable Supply Chain Integration
Understanding Responsible Procurement and Creating Value
IT Sector Should Leverage Their Supply Chains
UN Supply Chain Sustainability Tool Introduced at Rio+20
CIPS Sustainable Procurement Tool
Sustainable Supply Chain Data Book
Responsible Procurement Strategy (e-book)
Video - Sustainable Supply Chain Tutorials from IMD
Video: Ten Steps To A Greener Supply Chain
Video: Future Supply Chain 2016
Video: Green Supply Chain
The Supply Chain of CO2 Emissions (White Paper)
New Dimensions in Supply Chain Management (White Paper)
Digging In: The Nuts and Bolts of Supply Chain Sustainability (White Paper)
White Paper - Best Practices in Sustainable Procurement of Paperboard