Dive Brief:

• A University of Tennessee Global Supply Chain Institute Study sponsored by SC Johnson reveals that instituting a strong sustainability practice on which regular effort is expended — and shared — is vital, Supply Chain 247 reported Thursday. 
• The best way to ensure sustainability is through your suppliers, all of which should be able to offer proof of end-to-end traceability well beyond the first tier.
• Finding the right balance between divulging sources and retaining proprietary information is a challenge, but it can be achieved when companies succeed in establishing a record of sustainability best practices and reliability.

Dive Insight:

Supply chain integrity is the glue that supports a company's ability to represent itself as morally sound, or succeeding while benefiting both the planet and its people. Achieving this status enables representatives  to speak openly about its sources, and to earn stakeholder and consumer trust. Establishing a company as well-intended also serves to allay potential damage should a traceability issue occur: public trust will remain if a record of supplier accountability has already been well established.

Certainly supplier risk will always exist. Suppliers that at one time sourced sustainably or fairly may undergo changes causing a reduction in quality standards or legally employable workers. Slave labor, product contamination, and environmental damage could be the result, in which case immediate investigation and disassociation will be required. Protective measures such as employing an aggressive outside investigator can help prevent the harm such scenarios will cause.