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What are the upcoming trends in supply chain traceability?

We asked top experts in supply chain traceability what they expect the first half of the 2024 and what trends they foresee.

Experts commentaries
Estelle Levin-Nally
CEO and Founder, Levin Sources
Jenni Kiventerä, PhD
Senior Advisor at EIT RawMaterials
Patrick Nadoll, PhD
Senior Advisor at EIT RawMaterials
Matthew Gore
Partner, HFW
Nathan Williams
Founder & CEO, Minespider
Gonzalo Quijandria
Corporate Affairs & Sustainability Director at Minsur SA
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Supply chain traceability means tracking the movement of products or components throughout various stages of the supply chain, from raw material sourcing to the end consumer. During the last few years, the role of traceability has vastly increased due to rising environmental concerns and regulatory demands. Governments continue to introduce regulations to spur companies to collect, store and communicate key product data and ESG information across the supply chain. 

What will be next? How will supply chains transform further? What data will be needed and what technologies will help companies to comply with all requirements? Here we try to answer these questions and keep you ahead of the curve. 

What are the upcoming trends in supply chain traceability?

We asked top experts in supply chain traceability what they expect in the first half Q1 of 2024 and what trends they foresee. Several important trends were mentioned:

1. Traceability is one of the top priorities for business 

The role of traceability is only increasing with time. It enhances transparency by providing visibility into the movement of goods from their origin to the end consumer. Besides that, traceability implementation is required by many new regulations. It allows tracking and reducing environmental impacts, optimizing resource utilization, and supporting fair labor practices. Traceability not only improves operational efficiency but also enhances brand reputation and competitiveness.

2. Data standardization

Many experts agree that data standardization is vital for supply chain traceability. When data is standardized, it follows a uniform format and structure, making it easier to exchange information seamlessly between different stakeholders, systems, and platforms. Standardized data simplifies compliance with regulations and industry standards. 

3. Continuous investments 

Regulators and businesses will continue investing in traceability. Many experts expect that these investments will be put into technology development and enhancing transparency, reliability, and sustainability of supply chains originating from regions with high risks, particularly risks to the environment and human rights.

4. Increased need for cybersecurity

Traceability and an increased use of technologies such as IoT, RFID and other hardware devices will raise cybersecurity concerns. Companies have to start thinking about how to safely collect and store very large amounts of data.

Estelle Levin-Nally
CEO and Founder, Levin Sources
Bio
Estelle Levin-Nally, Founder & CEO of Levin Sources, is a recognised leader in the nexus of human rights, nature and minerals. She combines her commercial acumen, innovative thinking and experience in public affairs and transformational change to guide governments, industry and multistakeholder initiatives to create just, sustainable and valuable minerals value chains. Estelle provides strategy, policy, research, due diligence, assurance, and stakeholder engagement advisory to help Levin Sources’ clients design, implement and evaluate strategic initiatives to improve business performance and sustainability outcomes. She is also a sought-after moderator and public speaker.
Supply Chain Traceability is the means through which supply chain due diligence, product passports, extended producer responsibility and increasing recycling rates become possible. It is thus critical to driving a sustainable future. 

However, the value of traceability is determined not by the information it generates, but by what you can do with it. There’s no point in traceability if there are no resources left to act on the information it generates. That’s why, to me, traceability needs to be seen as a common good and to be as cheap as possible. Most resources should be going to take the actions that really will drive change in minerals value chains. If forced labour is the issue, then it’s important to know which provenances are higher risk, yes, but that is only so I can put in place the right supply chain controls to reduce the likelihood of the risk arising, and its severity should it arise. That means investments in prevention, minimisation and remedy in the affected territories, communities, and entities; it should not mean avoidance and boycotts save in exceptional situations, such as conflict financing. 

So in the year ahead, I see a rationalisation of traceability solutions, with consolidation driven by both the commercial, social and environmental value that each provider can deliver as well as the degree of interoperability that is achievable. I also see a lot of efforts to standardise data governance to facilitate data sharing across jurisdictional and corporate boundaries, in the interest of the common good. Because, after all, that is really what traceability should be here to do.

Jenni Kiventerä, PhD
Senior Advisor at EIT RawMaterials
Bio
Specialized in mine tailings and industrial side stream utilization and safe stabilization technologies. Currently working with stakeholder engagement, raw materials criticality and innovative solutions for sustainable sourcing and circular economy.
Patrick Nadoll, PhD
Senior Advisor at EIT RawMaterials
Bio
Expert for the sustainable discovery and supply of strategic minerals and metals and their value chains.
In today's dynamic markets, supply chain traceability takes center stage, especially amidst global tensions and trade disruption. Europe faces a challenging journey towards a more responsible, resilient, and diversified raw materials sector and has defined ambitious goals in its Critical Raw Materials Act. 

While companies and governments are increasingly addressing traceability and responsible sourcing aspects of their vital supply chains, there remain significant challenges. A toolbox of metrics, standards, certifications, and regulations, backed by cutting-edge technologies like blockchain and IoT, is deployed to tackle these hurdles. Streamlining these measures is in progress to facilitate their implementation and boost their impact. 

In this context, projects like Raw Material Radar, a project co-funded by EIT RawMaterials, champion technologies that enable and validate responsible and legal Artisanal Small-Scale Mining (ASM) operations in the EU mineral supply chain. Other EU-funded initiatives, such as CSyARES and MaDiTraCe focus on creating standardised sustainability certifications for rare earth elements, emphasising the Product Environmental Footprint and enhancing transparency, reliability, and sustainability in complex critical raw material supply chains. Transparent and trustworthy assessments are an essential cornerstone in this context. Industry, governments, and NGOs must engage in a concerted effort to ensure successful implementation. Trust and readily available granular and standardised data are at the core of this critical endeavour.

Matthew Gore
Partner, HFW
Bio
Matthew is fast gaining a reputation in HFW as the go-to expert for corporate/commercial legal work, as he’s a specialist in the ports and terminals, shipping and logistics sectors. This should come as no surprise given his commercial and operational involvement in these sectors since 1996; having spent his early career with the leading container shipping line. This first-hand experience gives him an unparalleled understanding of how the industry works.
It is difficult to describe blockchain technology as a "trend" as it has been a buzzword in the logistics industry for some time now. That being said, we are seeing more companies experimenting, innovating, and implementing blockchain in the supply chain.

The benefits of blockchain are undisputed and well-known. Whereas the "traditional" model is based on a centralised system, which can be vulnerable to data manipulation and cyber-attacks, blockchain provides a decentralised system that can facilitate supply chain transparency and traceability. 

However, blockchain is a relatively new phenomenon. Its full potential is continuing to be realised. The latest development is its role in the emerging "Internet of Things" (IoT) - a network of physical things (e.g. containers, cargo etc.) implanted with technology, such as Radio Frequency Identification Tags (RFID) and smart sensors, allowing these to be tracked and monitored in real-time.  

Among other things, the Internet of Things will improve supply chain traceability by providing automated and up-to-date information on cargo (for example, by giving information on the condition, temperature and environment of the cargo). Equally, with every opportunity comes an opportunist looking to exploit the system. Naturally, the increase in reliance on new technologies will bring a "trend" in investing in and increasing cyber security to identify and address new potential weak spots in the supply chain. It will be interesting to see how the stakeholders approach these latest developments in 2024.

Nathan Williams
Founder & CEO, Minespider
Bio
Nathan Williams is the Founder & CEO of Minespider, a supply chain traceability solution pioneering the shift towards responsible, compliant, and circular mineral supply chains.. Their partners include companies such as Renault, Ford, Google, Cisco and Minsur. Nathan has facilitated blockchain workshops as a visiting expert for the UNECE and the World Economic Forum.
2024 will be the year that traceability moves from being a ‘nice to have’ to a baseline requirement to do business for raw materials suppliers. Companies have been facing increased regulatory pressure to report on sustainability in their supply chain for the past few years, however, this year geopolitical pressure will play an increased role in the transparency transition. 

To counter the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine the G7 has passed 12 sanctions packages since 2022. The most recent of which puts into place not only a ban on Russian diamonds, but a requirement for a robust verification and traceability system for all rough diamonds within the G7. This measure is a first of its kind and similar traceability requirements are to be expected for other raw materials going forward, as the G7 attempts to prevent goods from evading sanctions.

With market restrictions being placed on material supply it is very likely that the transparency transition will be led by suppliers of raw materials rather than downstream manufacturers. To access G7 markets, suppliers of key materials will adopt traceability systems voluntarily, in order to front-load transparency data and retain preferred supplier status with downstream clients. It will become a regular practice to purchase raw materials with a digital material passport (DPP) that shows product authenticity, ESG certifications, and material provenance. 

We should expect the 34 materials named in the EU Critical Raw Materials Act to be the first to adopt such passports, with particular emphasis on any material that has significant global suppliers based in Russia.

Gonzalo Quijandria
Corporate Affairs & Sustainability Director, Minsur SA
Bio
Gonzalo Quijandria is a Corporate Affairs & Sustainability Director at Minsur SA, a mining company from Peru producing tin, gold, niobium, and tantalum. Minsur is one of the global leaders in tin production with over 46 years of experience and consumers in Latin America and across the world. At Minsur, Gonzalo Quijandria is responsible for sustainability issues and legal aspects as well as social responsibility and community relations.
When we discuss sustainability, carbon emissions reduction, and traceability, we always have the same question “Who's going to pay for that?”. I don't think that's the right question to ask.

We do have a certain pressure from regulators, but we should not wait until the regulation comes into force. We should act ahead of time. It's the final consumer, the one that defines all these demands, and our duty is to listen to the final consumers. If consumers want traceability and are concerned about where the minerals come from, standards and compliance with policies, we should listen and set up a strategy. 

In my opinion, sustainability initiatives will and should be perceived as investments in the future.

Right now we are implementing the largest blockchain traceability project in tin on our San Rafael mine in Peru. We expect other minerals producers to follow, and traceability to become a more common practice for all minerals, especially the critical ones.

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