Dive Brief:
- Mars is partnering with Wholechain to build end-to-end traceability for the seafood used in its pet food, per a June 16 press release.
- Mars is working with Wholechain, a traceability solution provider, to establish “digital interoperable traceability,” per the press release. This means the two companies will create a system where standardized data about products and ingredients can be digitally captured and shared between different platforms and partners.
- The partnership aligns with Mars' new commitment to meet the Global Dialogue on Seafood Traceability standard. Blockchain technology from Wholechain, which is GDST-verified, will help establish full supply chain visibility for Mars by collecting and utilizing data from origin to finished product.
Dive Insight:
With fish being a critical ingredient in the company’s pet food brands, such as Pedigree, Sheba and Royal Canin, Mars follows guidelines to ensure that its seafood meets its quality and sustainability requirements, according to the company’s Responsible Fish Sourcing Guidelines. The guidelines cover wild-caught, farmed fish and fish meal, alongside fish oil used in Mars’ petcare products.
By joining Wholechain, Mars aims to ensure customers that its seafood products are fully traceable and can provide GDST-compliant data on products, per the press release.
“At Mars, we have been working for more than 15 years, in collaboration with [World Wildlife Fund], to drive more responsible fish sourcing, and address the growing pressures on vulnerable ocean ecosystems,” said Andrew Russell, Global Marine Sustainability Lead of Mars Petcare.
The GDST platform was established in 2017 by the WWF and Institute of Food Technologists to create “common language for supply chain traceability to address ethical, responsible, and sustainable seafood supply,” according to the GDST website. The goal is to promote the adoption of digital interoperable traceability to drive “trust in fishery and aquaculture supply chains,” per the website.
Further, Mars’ partnership with GDST and Wholechain aids a larger effort to expand the GDST Standard into other commodity markets — not just seafood, per the press release.
“The learnings Mars will be taking from implementing the GDST Standard for their seafood products across their non-seafood supply chains is anticipated to help to drive wider adoption of the GDST Standard across multiple markets, delivering industry-wide improvements in traceability and accountability,” GDST Director Huw Thomas said in a statement.
Mars is one of the several companies looking to shore up its ethical standards across seafood supply chains. In January, for instance, Whole Foods Market launched a new Seafood Code of Conduct that aims to offer increased labor protections for fishers and vessel crews and set higher supplier standards.
In 2023, Walmart and Sam’s Club also updated their seafood supply chain standards to improve transparency and data collection.
