Sugar link: towards a sustainable sugar supply chain
The Sugar Link project was established in 2004 to help develop a shared vision for a sustainable sugar supply chain. The project focused specifically on the New South Wales sugar industry (including key supply chain partners) and their vision/strategies for moving towards a sustainable sugar supply chain. The project did not attempt to assess the sustainability of the industry. This report outlines a number of important elements that need to be considered in any future attempts to evaluate the success of initiatives towards a sustainable sugar supply chain. It has a stronger focus on the production end of the sugar supply chain than the manufacturing and retail sectors, which require further investigation. There is also a greater focus on environmental issues as opposed to social aspects. To demonstrate the opportunities and challenges in achieving improved economic, social and environmental outcomes, three NSW Sugar Milling Co-operative's supply-chain collaborations are used as case studies by tracking the progress of different sugar-industry products: packaged Home Brand sugar supplied to Woolworths, bulk sugar sales to Nestl, and biofuel energy production in partnership with Delta Electricity.