Project title: Standardised approach to assess and address sustainability impacts in seed supply chains
Project number: SMP-25011
Requesting country: South Africa
Year: 2025
Budget: € 50,000
Project leader: Miriam Vreman
Knowledge institute: Wageningen University & Research
Project partners: Bejo Zaden

Summary

The Netherlands, a major trade hub in the international food and agricultural sector, is impacted by new sustainability requirements. Dutch agri-food companies face commercial risks due to a lack of official guidance and tools to implement EU supply chain legislation. Six seed sector companies (4 Dutch, 1 German, 1 Swiss) and their South African business partner seek assistance to meet legislative requirements, assess and address negative impacts, and reduce the legislative burden. The Seed Money Project aims to help seed sector companies prepare for compliance with EU legislation and create meaningful impact by developing and evaluating the feasibility of a harmonised and standardised approach for identifying, assessing, addressing, and reporting on ESG impacts in line with the CSRD and CSDDD. The project will focus on creating standardised processes to meet legislative requirements efficiently across the seed sector while promoting collaboration among seed companies and relevant stakeholders to address shared ESG challenges.