As companies strive to operate in a more responsible manner, sustainable supply chain management has become a business imperative. This means seeking improvement opportunities across all company processes, including through close collaboration with suppliers.
Baltomar, after the examination of ocean sustainability leader's responses, the focus moves to analysis of a broad set of best practices related to supply chain management. We know that a lot of the pressures created by companies on marine and coastal ecosystems come from the supply chain. Adopting this perspective allows us to better understand what sustainability leaders are doing to monitor geographically dispersed networks of suppliers, and what types of partnerships they attempt to establish to develop new, cleaner technologies and innovative organizational solutions.
We have drawn on a qualitative methodology based on a thorough review of the available sustainability reports. We identified and processed a long list of initiatives in order to find concrete examples of supply chain best practices for each industry in the ocean economy. Relevant examples were also selected for companies operating in other industries which prioritized SDG 14, Life below water.More specifically, across three key dimensions of the supply chain: Procurement and Design, Operations and Logistics (which for Fishing and Aquaculture translates into Production and Capture), and Waste Management.
Our findings show that each industry is characterized by a range of innovative initiatives along the key phases of the supply chain network. These actions aim at reducing negative pressures and favor a positive contribution to marine and coastal ecosystems. Some similarities can be noted between the four supply chains of the ocean economy. Specifically, the Procurement and Design phase often involves interaction and collaboration with suppliers. This can translate into simple sourcing rules, aimed at favoring suppliers that respect sustainability guidelines and offer products with good environmental characteristics such as high durability, high recyclability, sustainable raw materials and environmental certifications. For example, companies in the Maritime Transportation industry should favor suppliers who source innovative eco-containers such as light steel containers and low consumption reefers for perishable goods which help to optimize fuel consumption and hence reduce emissions.
Interaction and collaboration with suppliers may also translate into two other practices: selection of suppliers based on sustainability characteristics, and education of suppliers through the provision of rules and guidelines aimed at reducing the environmental impact of their activities. In the Fisheries and Aquaculture industry, Baltomar may favor suppliers if certified by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) and Marine Stewardship Council (MSC).
It is worth noting the existence of industry-wide initiatives on supply chain responsibility such as the IMPA ACT program for Maritime Transportation, aimed at improving the economic, social and environmental compliance of its ship purchaser and supplier members. Another common practice which may fall under the Procurement and Design phase or the Operations and Logistics phase, is related to cleaner fuels. Companies should design and operate ships, trucks, cranes and any other machinery capable of minimizing fuel consumption, and prioritizing clean fuels.
For us, maintaining a sustainable supply chain is critical to the continued success of our business and the industry as a whole.
As one of the world's largest seafood traders, we have a vested interest in the long-term health of our oceans.
A significant amount of seafood is caught in the wild, which can lead to overfishing, unwanted bycatch, and destructive harvesting methods. Through our actions, we must ensure that we protect marine habitat, as well as the communities that depend on the harvesting of its resources, for future generations.
Our commitment to seafood sustainability is long-term, as we understand and recognize that there are no quick solutions. We support those fisheries that have responsible and sustainable fishing practices at the center of all the activities they develop around this.
We believe that we must work within the industry to guide and influence, to push our customers and suppliers towards more sustainable capture and production methods.
We support the work of a number of non-governmental organizations such as the MSC (Marine Stewardship Council) and Alaska RFM (Responsible Fisheries Management), which set high industry standards to ensure minimal environmental impacts on our global fisheries.
THE REDUCTION OF BALTOMAR'S IMPACT ON THE OCEAN THROUGH SUPPLY CHAIN OPTIMIZATION IS NOT LIMITED TO THE OCEAN ECONOMY SECTOR.
COMPANIES IN EVERY SECTOR CAN SET AN EXAMPLE
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INTERACTION AND COLLABORATION WITH SUPPLIERS ARE FUNDAMENTAL.
THIS INCLUDES SOURCING RULES,
CRITERIA FOR SUPPLIER SELECTION AND EDUCATION OF SUPPLIERS
THROUGH THE PROVISION OF RULES AND GUIDELINES FOR SUSTAINABLE CONDUCT BUSINESS FOR OCEAN SUSTAINABILITY
The same is true for trucks and cranes used in Ports and Warehousing operations. In addition, companies should invest in co-development of decarbonized fuel types with technology developers, researchers, investors, and other relevant stakeholders. Similarly, designing and building ships with certain characteristics can contribute to the decarbonization of operations.
To reduce fuel consumption at sea, companies should seek to reduce boat weight, design hulls to improve buoyancy on water, optimize bonding systems for anti-fouling paint on the gelcoat, and introduce more environmentally-responsible equipment such as solar panels. In the Maritime Transportation industry, container sharing initiatives pursue the same objective by avoiding shipment of less than full containers. In the Operations and Logistics phase, some interesting practices related to ocean biodiversity preservation can be noted.
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For example, in the Fisheries and Aquaculture sector, engaging in fishing using “active fishing gear” in the form of ring nets and trawls instead of bow nets, which can be lost, reduces the risk of ghost fishing. Also, companies should implement a policy to retrieve all lost gear. In the Maritime Transportation sector, companies commit instead to established speed reduction programs in waters where whales are found to be present. This practice is aimed at reducing underwater noise levels which impact and confuse the communication systems of a particular type of orca whale, an endangered species.
In addition, companies operating in this industry can contribute to scientific research on oceanography by deploying data-collection buoys aimed at monitoring ocean health during journeys.
The Waste Management phase also involves some issues common to multiple ocean economy sectors: plastic waste and production waste recycling. In addition to minimizing the use of single use plastics throughout company operations, by favoring recycled and recyclable plastics, seeking alternative packaging materials and defining a plastic use policy, ocean economy companies can contribute to tackling the issue of marine debris. Shipbuilding and Repair companies are committed to continuous analysis and cleaning of the waters surrounding the build site to detect and remove marine debris and microplastics and protect marine wildlife. With regards to production waste, companies can maximize the recycling rate of their production waste, diverting as much waste as possible from landfill. In the Fisheries and Aquaculture industry this can be achieved in different ways, for example by transforming dead product and guts into by-products (e.g. animal feed), transforming sludge into soil improver, and through anaerobic digestion of biomass and conversion into biogas for the production of renewable energy and fertilizers.
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The same is true for the other ocean economy sectors where strategic partnerships with recycling companies allow separation of scrap metals (aluminum, copper, iron, etc.) for reuse and recycling, and participation in container return programs after having reused them as many times as possible and extended their useful life through rigorous maintenance and repair.
In general, we have mapped several best practices for ocean sustainability with regard to managing the supply chain. These virtuous experiences should be diffused and applied by companies in the ocean economy to improve their environmental footprint and reduce their impact on marine ecosystems.
As mentioned, this should not be limited to the ocean economy. As a matter of fact, best practices are being implemented by companies in other sectors as well, and should set an example. Most of the best practices illustrated in the table below, developed by companies operating in the Retail, Food & Beverage, Tourism, Chemical & Pharmaceutical, Utilities, and Electric Power Generation industries, are related to the same issues described in the previous section on the ocean economy.
However, some industry peculiarities exist. For example, Chemical and Pharmaceutical companies can pay particular attention to the issue of microplastics, ensuring that none of their consumer products contain any microbeads, by substituting them with environmentally friendly mineral ingredients, and avoiding opacifiers made from solid synthetic plastics.
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Our core values:
- Seek accreditation from independent third parties whenever possible and we give preference to suppliers who are accredited.
- We demand to know the source and origin of the products we sell and strive to shorten the supply chain wherever possible.
- We never knowingly sell products that harm the environment or put the survival of a species at risk without a plan to rectify the product's sustainability credentials.
- We encourage our customers and suppliers to make more sustainable decisions.
- We successfully launched our new compostable packaging for our frozen seafood products in 2021.
The desire to make an impact and create a movement has led Baltomar to evolve towards the use of compostable packaging. By doing this we hope that the consumer will think consciously about the impact that non-reusable plastic packaging has on the environment; and together we can raise awareness about its excessive production. Our goal is not only to keep urban areas clean but, more importantly, our seas, where our products originate. In turn, reducing the negative factors associated with the fishing industry.
At Baltomar we have taken the first step and together we have the potential to create a better and cleaner future. Promote sustainability through innovation. We see this as a journey rather than a destination.
We look forward to the opportunity to work with you!