SUSTAINABLE FUTURE
FARMER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (FMS)
A revolutionary step towards developing fully transparent and traceable sourcing networks.
The future of data-driven innovation in transparency and traceability.
Farmer Management System (FMS) is a cloud application that comes under the sphere of our Procurement Management System, a powerful gamut of applications that is the prime enabler of our Direct Procurement Program giving us and our customers complete visibility over the supply chain. FMS has been built in-house using a comprehensive framework that includes metrics from Sustainability and Responsibility parameters including Food Safety, Social, Environment, Labour, Human Rights and Economic indicators. The system draws insights from our extensive years of experience on the ground in six origins spread across West and East Africa.
Human Right
Improved visibility in sourcing networks through FMS will help us in fighting human right abuses in our supply chain. All farmer suppliers must abide by and respect the protection of internationally proclaimed human rights.
Labour
Labour standards adopted by the farmer should be consistent with the ILO regulations. FMS can identify if Child Labor or any Forced/Bonded labour is used in the farms and can quickly take steps to remediate any non-conformance.
Training
A cashew farmer needs to be trained in a variety of modules including Crop Quality and Management, GAP, Soil BMP etc. FMS can help us target farmers who need training and direct necessary resources towards helping him manage his farm better.
Transactions
All first-mile transaction data are recorded in our Procurement Management System which is automatically shared with FMS. Transactions summaries and statistical data can help in identifying yield changes and direct resources targeted at the root cause of the problem.
Food Safety
FMS will give complete visibility on the fertilisers and pesticides used by our farmer suppliers. Pesticides are widely used in producing cashew to control pests. Data gathered by FMS will detect and prevent any banned or harmful pesticide from getting into the food chain.
Aggregator
Aggregator acts as a first-mile intermediary between small scale farmers and us. Aggregator data helps us to divide our supplier network into collective groups and implement support systems and direct resources customised for each group.
Living Standard
We aim to combat poverty for our farmers and uplift his household to relatively higher standards of living. Living Standards of the farmer and his family is an important metric in understanding the impact of his relationship with us.
Environment
Environment Protection metrics can help us identify any non-conformance and help the farmer in adopting sustainable and responsible management of the natural resources he depends on for his livelihood.
Over 60 data points enable complete visibility of our procurement chain.
Features of our Farmer Management System
FMS is a cloud application that can be accessed on the ground from any digital platform by our field officers. Data is stored in secure cloud servers managed by third-party cloud services and accessible only to employees of Alphonsa Cashew Industries. These data are neither sold nor shared with anyone outside the firm.
End to End case-level traceability can be achieved by combining data from our Traceability System and Procurement Management System.
A detailed profile for each farmer is collected with their photographs and GPS data points of their farms. Information is collected across 8 Key Metrics including economic and sustainability data, viz. Human Right, Labor, Training, Transactions, Living Standard, Food Safety, Aggregator and Environment.
Captured data can be analysed to prepare a detailed Improvement & Support Plan that is customised for each farmer helping him run a sustainable farming business and provide a livelihood to many others around him.
These data contribute to a more transparent sourcing network and help us develop a traceable supply chain, greatly helping our customers in meeting their business objectives and sustainability goals.
FMS is the prime enabler of our Sustainable and Responsible Procurement program.
Raw cashew nuts are predominately grown in economically fragile areas. Our intent is to procure the nuts in a manner that safeguards the communities’ social fabric and environmental resources.
As a processor, we depend on our procurement supply chains to process the finest quality cashew kernels. Our goal is to secure high-quality raw cashew nut from as close to the source as possible. This involves partnering with smallholder farmers to help improve their productivity, profitability and providing good working conditions which attract and retain people in agriculture.
We source almost 90% of our requirement through our Direct Procurement Programme spread across 6 countries, working closely with commercial and smallholder farmers.
We firmly believe that addressing the economic, social and environmental challenges within the local context is important to creating thriving supply chain systems and ensuring the reliability of supply of high quality raw cashew.
Empowering the First-mile through our Farmer Management System
We realise that supporting smallholders and subsistence farmers alone are not enough. It has become clear that supporting the smallest scale farmers requires taking clear actions based on data analytics. The focus has to be on both farm production and the linkages between that production and wider markets along with other sustainability metrics.
The economy in Africa is very heavily reliant on small-scale, private and mostly rural agriculture. By far the majority of employment and earning is done at a family scale, with farmers and smallholders depending on their crops and livestock farming for their livelihoods. In many major raw cashew origins, 80% of the population depends on agriculture. More than 80% of farmers engaged in agricultural activities are smallholders with less than two hectares of productive land. Many smallholders work at subsistence levels, and women constitute the majority of farmers, producing more than 70% of the food. When agribusinesses are strengthened in the region, there are also a number of additional positive impacts for small scale farmers and underserved communities, as well as for the SMEs themselves and for the wider economy.
When agriculture is able to grow at a local level, farmers are able to earn more capital that can be reinvested locally, enhancing capacity and efficiency and growing returns. Families are able to move from subsistence farming into more profitable farming businesses. Women farmers’ access to better markets facilitates greater spending on family welfare, nutrition, and girls’ education.
Learn more about Procurement
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