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In the years following the Rana Plaza
Factory disaster in 2013 pressure has
mounted – particularly from millennial
consumers – for organisations to
provide greater insight into the
working conditions of manufacturing
facilities in emerging markets.
While sustainability continues to be a
hot topic, there are now even larger
conversations opening up around
environmental impact. Recently, at the
COP 21 climate conference in Paris,
apparel companies, called out as one
of the most hazardous industries for
environmental impact, were asked to
reconsider their high carbon footprints.
Through 2016 conversations around
ethical practices in the supply chain are
liable to continue and organisations
will need to consider how they
can provide consumers with the
visibility they are calling for, at
the same time as reduce their
environmental impact.
The ethical movement
Businesses have realised
that ethical sourcing and
sustainability is not just the
ideal of a few ethically minded
campaigners but the driver
of real long term growth and
profitability. Understanding this
importance, some companies
have made sustainability a
core part of their mission and a
powerful differentiator and are leading
by example.
With their life cycle analysis, Levi
Strauss & Co. found that 3,800 litres of
water were used and 33.4 kg of CO
2
were produced in the lifetime of a pair
of jeans. In response, they optimised
trucking routes to significantly reduce
carbon emissions, implemented a
manufacturing process that uses only
recycled water, and developed a
product line that reduced the water
The sustainable
supply chain in 2016
used in finishing by up to 96 per
cent. Levi’s has also offered financial
incentives for suppliers to comply with
their environmental, health, safety,
and labour standards in their Terms of
Engagement. Patagonia meanwhile has
an ongoing Footprint Chronicles map on
its website that allows customers to see
exactly where its products are made.
What’s more, following last year’s
COP 21 summit, retailers like Ikea and
Marks & Spencer vowed to reduce
their carbon impact – which coincides
with a mandate that retailers need
to seriously evaluate how they are
impacting climate change – while
China was sanctioned for the high level
of pollution it created in manufacturing.
In an increasingly globalised world, the need for greater
supply chain transparency has become a major issue for
manufacturers and retailers. Laila Beswick, head of UK and
Nordics marketing, GT Nexus, explains why.
Sustainable and ethical: those that
make sound environmental decisions
and uphold ethical standards, by
providing sustainable supplier initiatives
that help meet environmental, health
and safety, and labour standards will be
held in the highest regard.
Transparent: having ‘sight’ and certainty
of what is going on in the supply
chain and, ultimately, foresight is
crucial. In today’s world of complex
supply chains companies have to
respond swiftly to sudden changes
and unforeseen disruptions and
transparency is critical in battling
these challenges.
Secure: having a secure supply
chain is essential to mitigate
against potential disasters; in some
industries this can be a matter of
life and death. If illegal medicines
or substances enter pharmaceutical
supply chains, for example, the
repercussions could be devastating.
Fair and inclusive: supply chains can
span the globe; they have a big impact
on all of us, touching many lives in many
different countries - from a garment
factory in Bangladesh to a luxury store
on Rodeo Drive. The suppliers and
trading partners in a global supply chain
are many and varied; for end-to-end
sustainability companies need insight
into activities in all links of their supply
chain.
There is an undeniable movement
towards focusing on sourcing,
ethical practices and sustainability
with consumers leading the charge
– but not everyone is joining in.
There are still far too many stories
of organisations allowing appalling
working conditions, or allowing illegal
materials to enter their supply chains.
These practices need to be eradicated
and as more realise the financial and
reputational implications of failing to do
so we will see supply chains become
increasingly:
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Logistics Business Magazine | February 2016
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