The Need for Supply Chain Transparency
The push for supply chain transparency began in the 1990's, with many large companies adopting codes of practice relating to environmental and labour conditions in their primary base, a move in part inspired by high profile exposure of unacceptable conditions.
Cotton production has become a topic under increased scrutiny due to a variety of social and environmental issues, including the use of forced labour (adult and child), hazardous pesticides and the demands placed on water resources. Knowing the origin is of real commercial value when assessing potential risks that a brand may be exposed to.
Consumers are ever more aware of the realities of international supply chains and how their buying choices are linked to good or bad practices overseas. Consumers are demanding to know the origin of the products they are buying, and the impacts producing them has on people and the planet.
In addition to consumers, investors are also becoming increasingly interested in a company's corporate social responsibility (CSR) commitment and practice alongside sales figures in an attempt to understand a business' long-term sustainability. The complexity of supply chain 'issues' is becoming less acceptable to concerned investors as a legitimate reason for inaction.
As a result, more initiatives are taking place within the fashion industry to improve supply chain visibility, such as the #whomademyclothes hashtag introduced by Fashion Revolution to understand the environmental, social and labour impacts of making and selling products and services. Actions needs to be taken at every step of the supply chain to follow the information from source to store.
Knowing material origin is key to demonstrating to customers that a company responsibly acknowledges the importance of supply chain transparency and can present a marketing opportunity to customers by communicating supply chain excellence.
Take steps towards improving your supply chain transparency
Eurofins | BLC can help you to understand your supply chain and begin to understand and tackle some of the sustainability challenges that could be present in your supply chain. Our supply chain mapping service can help you determine the origin of raw materials in your product. Our material risk assessment will give you the tools to manage environmental and social compliance risks up your supply chain and communicate from a position of knowledge to customers and investors.
For more information, please contact the Eurofins|BLC team on [email protected]
20 July 2021