Skip to main content

Innovative reporting on the impact of food production

Deloitte and dsm-firmenich: Sustell™ strategic partnering

Food producers globally are on a journey to improve sustainability, by lowering greenhouse gas emissions, nitrate pollution and water usage, while also making better use of raw materials and reducing the impact on biodiversity. With animal farming alone accounting for 14.5% of all human-derived GHG emissions, such action is paramount; the importance of the agrifood industry evolving, rapidly, to meet the demands of today and tomorrow cannot be overstated.

A novel partnership

 

An example of a transformational, system-shaping initiative is the strategic partnership between dsm-firmenich Animal Nutrition & Health and Deloitte. This partnership centres on Sustell – dsm-firmenich’s innovative Software as a Service platform, engineered to calculate the environmental impact of producing animal protein at scale, harnessing data directly from the feed and farm sectors within the value chain. 

Sustainable food systems are a critical factor in creating a sustainable future. Within this, one key system is the production of animal protein, and the foundation for sustainable animal protein production is having an accurate picture of environmental impact based on primary data – a baseline from which improvements can be measured. Our partnership allows us to bridge silos in the value chain between feed producers, farmers and integrators, with downstream demand and economic information – e.g., from processors and those involved in consumer-packaged goods (CPGs). It also allows us to rapidly connect participants across the value chain, to unlock new value opportunities and achieve meaningful sustainability improvements.

Sustell

 

Sustell’s origins are firmly rooted in the science of food production, with the platform being refined and enhanced through over five years of product development. The result is an authoritative full Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), which is aligned with EU PEF (16 dimensions) and with ISO-certified methodology. The platform helps to identify impact hotspots, and provides intervention modelling across various scenarios, which in turn supports customers on their sustainability journey. The impact modelling takes into account the interplay of various activities within an overall production ecosystem where supply chain transparency requires cooperation. This cooperation spans most key livestock species and geographies, and encourages those with agency – such as farm data platforms, farm advisors and other alliances – to adopt more sustainable practices. 

Sustell’s approach makes precise, tailored environmental accountability the new normal across the animal farming industry. It is the standard that opens the door to commercial opportunities, by driving customer demand, enabling grants and preferential development finance, opening up new income streams through carbon credits and data royalties, and lowering environmental impact. 

Delivering growth

 

Deloitte’s role in the partnership centres on enabling the growth opportunities for businesses deploying Sustell’s capabilities. Our flexible services span strategy, business development, solution development and operations, supporting Sustell’s leadership in advising client businesses on establishing, owning and operating the new platform. 

By linking sustainability improvement with business opportunity, our partnership with dsm-firmenich Animal Nutrition & Health is helping to create a virtuous cycle that drives a profitable agriculture sector and a more sustainable food system.

To discuss how this groundbreaking new initiative can transform your agrifood business, please contact Jorg Schalekamp.

Did you find this useful?

Thanks for your feedback

If you would like to help improve Deloitte.com further, please complete a 3-minute survey