Sustainable sugar: Bonsucro unveils digital tool to map and assess supply chains

02 Sep 2021 --- Bonsucro, the non-profit organization that promotes sustainable sugarcane production, has expanded its partnership with the technology platform, SupplyShift, a new supply chain mapping tool. Sugar Mapping allows Bonsucro members to track and monitor their suppliers’ social and environmental sustainability measures at mill and farm levels.

It can be used for certified and non-certified sugarcane, ethanol, molasses, and bagasse supply chains.

The Sugar Mapping tool offers companies crucial insights into the performance from every tier of the value chain and allows them to make informed choices about their sugarcane sourcing. It is available via Bonsucro Connect.

Sugar Mapping allows Bonsucro members to track and monitor their suppliers’ social and environmental sustainability measures.

Sugar Mapping allows Bonsucro members to track and monitor their suppliers’ social and environmental sustainability measures

Sustainable sugarcane performance
Bonsucro worked closely with buyer members and SupplyShift to develop the mapping tool. It was designed using the organization’s experience in sugarcane sustainability and SupplyShift’s technology to provide valuable data, analytics, and visualizations for sustainable sugarcane performance.

End users send the pre-designed questionnaire to their suppliers and can choose whether to focus on one tier or trace all the way back to sugarcane origins. 

The data collected from the questionnaire is presented on the Bonsucro Connect dashboard.

The dashboard provides insights on sugarcane suppliers’ environmental and social sustainability policies, practices and certifications. This assessment allows end-users to identify gaps and risks then consider where suppliers might need guidance to improve. 

Overall, the tool is designed to drive change and create more resilient supply chains. It offers members useful and shareable metrics to inform their sustainability strategies, communications and Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) reporting.

Valuable insights
Technology and digital innovations will positively impact sugarcane supply chains, which is why Bonsucro wants to work with partners to widen access to appropriate technologies. 

“At Bonsucro, we’re always looking for new ways to enable the industry to make smart, sustainable sourcing decisions about sugarcane and its derivatives,” says Rafael Seixas, membership manager at Bonsucro. 

“Data is such an important piece of that decision-making process for our members and selecting the right application to deliver that data is a critical step.”

Bonsucro has been working with SupplyShift since 2016 because of its proven software that offers valuable transparency in complex international supply chains. 

Other sustainability standards and important strategic partners for Bonsucro, such as Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) and the Sustainability Consortium, also use the SupplyShift platform. 

Edited by Gaynor Selby