It commonly takes companies in the fruit and vegetable sector a great deal of effort to properly outline delivery chains and keep product info up-to-date. Six years ago, Marjan Smit founded SIM, a company that does exactly that. SIM focuses on all product flows within the retail sector, but fresh produce is one of the top priorities. Marjan reveals herself to be a socially responsible entrepreneur with a clear vision.
Making information understandable
SIM (Supply chain Information Management) aims to make information about a product understandable. The company focuses on chain information, which basically means tracking a product, in a particular delivery period, from cultivation to supermarket. Questions that can be answered on the basis of this information are: Where does our broccoli come from? Is it grown, harvested and transported safely and responsibly?
When Marjan started her business six years ago, her initial steps were taken cautiously, as she had no idea if there was a market for her plan. She did notice, however, that there was a need for the services she intended to deliver. "In order to share product information with a consumer, government or NGO, you first need to have that information. And I noticed that access to this data was limited, if not absent.”
Mission
SIM’s mission is to make chains transparent in an affordable manner. "I just have to make sure the chains are well identified in an inexpensive way. That way, problems become visible. This in turn allows me to promote sustainable and responsible entrepreneurship across the supply chain."
"My customers (i.e. the retailers) can only use their purchasing power if they have all the facts. The moment you identify the source of the problems, you can see things improve almost immediately. Let’s say a grower uses unpaid or underpaid foreign workers, and you have the reports to prove it, then the customer has something of substance to show the supplier and say: ‘Listen, I want to continue doing business with you, but you’ll have to change that.’"
Vision
According to Marjan, purchasing power can make the difference when it comes to working conditions and product safety. The owner of a cooperative, in a country where labour-related exploitation is the norm, will not implement improvements out of his own accord. "Only when the change becomes profitable will he mend his ways. So when a customer reveals that he is aware, and announces to leave if nothing changes, then all of a sudden the owner is inclined to do something. Money talks," says Marjan. "It’s sad to have to say it, but it’s reality."
Gradually, the entrepreneur observes that successes are being achieved in the chain. "Most time the implementations are successful. We measure that too and we see that things are getting better. But there will always be instances in which a client must let go of a supplier refusing to implement change. Of course, I’d prefer them to remain in business, but sometimes that is the inevitable outcome.”
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