Case Study
Traceability as a competitive advantage in the organic food segment
For the organic pioneer brand Davert, sustainability has been firmly anchored in the company for 40 years. Transparency is now moving to the centre of the product and sales strategy: internally for the team, externally for business customers and all the way to the consumer. With the ‘Exploring the Origin’ project, the company Midsona is looking all the way back to the origin of its products and setting new standards in the food industry with traceability. The supply chain and sustainability data for an entire collection of seven nut butter varieties, including two new products, is made accessible. Consumers can track the journey of the ingredients via a QR code on the packaging or on digital channels. The launch takes place in the Davert online shop as well as stores of organic specialist retailers and food retailers across Germany.
Case Study
Traceability as a competitive advantage in the organic food segment
For the organic pioneer brand Davert, sustainability has been firmly anchored in the company for 40 years. Transparency is now moving to the centre of the product and sales strategy: internally for the team, externally for business customers and all the way to the consumer. With the ‘Exploring the Origin’ project, the company Midsona is looking all the way back to the origin of its products and setting new standards in the food industry with traceability. The supply chain and sustainability data for an entire collection of seven nut butter varieties, including two new products, is made accessible. Consumers can track the journey of the ingredients via a QR code on the packaging or on digital channels. The launch takes place in the Davert online shop as well as stores of organic specialist retailers and food retailers across Germany.
11
Suppliers
already support the initiative and provide their supply chain and sustainability data.
479,340
kg
of nuts could be traced back to their origin by the time the project was launched.
3
Supply chains
use dynamic tracing data, specifically for the main ingredients peanuts, cashews and almonds.
The story behind the project
In collaboration with Seedtrace, Midsona – the company behind Davert – is gradually digitising its supply chains. In addition to implementing traceability, the main aim is to collect important sustainability data directly at the origin, analyse it and share it with retailers. Within just six months, the organic food manufacturer was able to connect the suppliers of the main ingredients end-to-end and make selected supply chains transparent at batch level. Find out more about the background of the project here.
2023: The “Klare Kante” Project
The collaboration was preceded by the ‘Klare Kante’ project in 2023, a collaboration with the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the Gesellschaft für internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and sequa. The aim was to analyse the supply chains of several SMEs with regard to risks and preparation for the Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (LkSG).
February 2024: The Transparency Commitment
September 2024: A transparent line of nut spreads
Milestone
Mapping of supply chain data
With an end-to-end platform, Seedtrace supports companies in collecting, digitising and analysing relevant sustainability data in food supply chains. This involves much more than simply knowing which country the ingredients come from. The level of granularity selected for the most important ingredients of the nut butter line includes detailed data collection for each individual farm in the cultivating countries. An intensive dialogue was initiated with suppliers and a detailed list of activities and entities in the supply chain was drawn up. This included the processing steps, the associated locations, the actors and the ID flows between them.
Milestone
Mapping of supply chain data
With an end-to-end platform, Seedtrace supports companies in collecting, digitising and analysing relevant sustainability data in food supply chains. This involves much more than simply knowing which country the ingredients come from. The level of granularity selected for the most important ingredients of the nut butter line includes detailed data collection for each individual farm in the cultivating countries. An intensive dialogue was initiated with suppliers and a detailed list of activities and entities in the supply chain was drawn up. This included the processing steps, the associated locations, the actors and the ID flows between them.
Milestone
Prioritisation of data points
The sustainability data is used to measure and evaluate social and environmental impacts. As part of the transparency project at Midsona, one of the long-term goals is to provide evidence of providing living income in the cultivating countries. In close co-operation with associations and NGOs, specific data points have already been collected for this purpose and will be expanded in the future. As different levels of data aggregation are particularly important for business partners and consumers, these are designed and tested for specific target groups.
Milestone
Prioritisation of data points
The sustainability data is used to measure and evaluate social and environmental impacts. As part of the transparency project at Midsona, one of the long-term goals is to provide evidence of providing living income in the cultivating countries. In close co-operation with associations and NGOs, specific data points have already been collected for this purpose and will be expanded in the future. As different levels of data aggregation are particularly important for business partners and consumers, these are designed and tested for specific target groups.
Visualise proven impact vividly
The supply chain and sustainability data are presented in the integrated, consumer-orientated Seedtrace app as tangible product journeys from the origin to the nut butter jar. The balance of facts and emotional content ensures that the target group is optimally engaged. Consumers can find detailed information about each ingredient and look right down to the individual farms. Both the characteristics of the farm and details of the working conditions can be viewed.
Seedtrace seamlessly integrates product transparency into the communication strategy and channels of its partners via a digital platform. In addition to printing the QR code on the jars of nut butter, which can be scanned to provide direct access to the product journey, Midsona also integrates the view as a widget in the Davert online shop and on the Davert website. All these functions can also be used by Midsona's customers.
"As an organic pioneer that has firmly anchored sustainability in the company for 40 years, we are convinced that the future lies in product transparency. With our "Exploring the Origin" project, we are taking the use of first-mile data and traceability to a new level and creating important momentum in retail that goes beyond certifications. Our suppliers welcome the initiative, as they are also recognising the increased demand for data collection and transparency. We invite buyers of selected Davert products on an interactive product journey in which our supply chains are presented in an easy-to-grasp and transparent manner – from the origin to Ascheberg."
Heiko Hintze - Division Director Northern Europe at Midsona
Results
Traceability on batch level per jar
The production processes behind the foods and the complexity of sustainability aspects are difficult for consumers to grasp. But from September 2024, they will be able to embark on a transparency journey to the origin of the jar of nut butter in their hands. By entering the best-before date, they will have access to the entire production process - from the cultivation of raw materials to processing - which is precisely linked to their item. Never before has it been possible to view the path of all the ingredients of a processed product so dynamically and comprehensively. With this transparency initiative, Davert makes it clear that they promote collaboration along the chain, are integrated directly and long-term at the origin and provide insights that create trust and long-term brand loyalty.
Conscious buying decisions
Davert provides access to extensive supply chain and sustainability data so that consumers, B2B customers and also the company's internal purchasing department can make informed buying decisions by actively engaging with the supply chain. The transparency initiative makes the cultivation conditions at the origin visible, provides access to the actions of the producers and tells the whole story behind Davert products. It emphasises that sustainably and fairly produced goods are only possible through long-term and fair partnerships.
More responsible supply chains
Midsona aims to take responsibility for its product supply chains and raise awareness of the underlying complexity. According to a Capgemini study from 2023, 83 percent of the consumer goods and retail companies surveyed see responsible procurement as a competitive advantage. So far, however, only 57 percent have launched initiatives to realise this ambition. For Davert, the traceability project is a decisive step towards building a USP in the organic market. Retail partners can use the supply chain transparency provided for their own sustainability KPIs or the required sustainability reporting. They also have the opportunity to engage in fact-based sustainability communication for B2B and B2C target groups.
Learn more about the challenges and the detailed project roadmap
Our case study offers a deep dive into the tracing project with Davert. Download it here and get exclusive insights into the challenges, solutions and the project process step by step.
Learnings
The relevance of first-mile data
Seedtrace puts a special focus on collecting first-mile supply chain data. This gives companies access to information on the social and environmental impacts of cultivation, especially of critical raw materials from the Global South such as cocoa, coffee and nuts. Finally, important sustainability data, e.g. for fair trade or organic certifications, is often collected for a specific purpose directly at the origin of the products, but is then not utilised further. It is rarely an active part of CSR management. For this reason, Seedtrace enables companies to manage, actively involve and enrich documents and certifications between several participants in the supply chain and thus also prepare for the requirements of the Green Claims Directive.
The need for cooperation
One of the biggest obstacles to sustainability efforts in supply chains is unclear responsibilities. In order for all supply chain partners in the project to work together, measures had to be put in place to protect competition-critical data. This was solved by aggregating, mapping and anonymising the supply chain data. At the same time, the focus had to be on the reutilisation of existing data and the automation of processes. This was achieved by making the processes flexible enough to adapt to the individual needs of the actors instead of relying solely on the initial collection of data.
Do not be discouraged
Also at Midsona, there was scepticism before the project as to whether the desired depth of data could be achieved at all. Every supply chain is unique, which is why this transparency project also adopted the established procedure: together with Midsona, Seedtrace determined the status quo and then developed the processes further in partnership. By working closely with the suppliers and connecting the partners directly to the platform to upload data and documents, Seedtrace was able to provide the desired insights and analyses in the supply chain. Partners who were willing to provide primary data from the origin achieved a special strategic positioning through their willingness to cooperate. This process is now continuing: additional data points, raw materials and suppliers are being added.
Our approach to traceability in the supply chain
Together with our partners, we are committed to a long-term transparency strategy in the supply chain. Traceability as a lever for more sustainable processes – from the harvest to the end product – is not something that is created overnight, but a process that we go through step by step together with our customers.
