When supply chains face new transparency requirements, the instinct is often to build another platform or introduce another digital solution. Producer organisations are then often asked to provide the same data multiple times, while having limited visibility over where it goes or how it creates value for them.

But what if the key to trusted traceability lies not in new systems, but in connecting existing ones more effectively?

This question was at the heart of Fairtrade International's Sustainable Traceability for Empowered Producers project, funded by the ISEAL Innovations Fund, supported by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and UK International Development from the UK government.

From November 2024 to September 2026, the project explored how sustainability information can be exchanged across supply chains in ways that are both trusted and practical. With the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) creating an urgent need for reliable geolocation and deforestation data, the project explored how producers, cooperatives and commercial partners could share information efficiently while ensuring producers retain visibility and control over their data.

The resulting report, Trusted Traceability, presents lessons drawn from coffee, cocoa and banana supply chains. It challenges assumptions about interoperability and proposes practical approaches to traceability that benefit producer organisations as well as those on the other end of the supply chain.

“Interoperability does not always require another platform or a new technology,” explains Tatiana Vanegas, who led the project’s implementation. “Sometimes we first need to understand what is already working in the supply chain. Existing operational references can become a simple common language between actors that otherwise work in silos.”

At the same time, connecting information is not enough: “Producers need to be able to see, understand and act on information about themselves before it travels downstream,” Tatiana emphasises. The project showed that innovation can sometimes be less about reinventing the wheel and more about connecting what already exists in a way that creates trust and value for everyone.

“The insights gained from producers and traders have been extremely valuable for shaping Fairtrade International's traceability solution in a way that aligns with established supply chain processes, while at the same time pursuing innovative approaches for producers to control and manage access to their data. This project made this extensive research possible, along with the engaged support of ISEAL in connecting us with important sectoral and international initiatives and institutions.” shared Jens Benke, Head of Product Management at Fairtrade International.

According to Jessica Fryer, Senior Coordinator in ISEAL’s Impacts and Innovations team, “Traceability should deliver value for producers, not simply extract data to meet downstream requirements. Producers should have control over how their data is used and gain practical benefits from sharing it. This publication shows how voluntary sustainability standards can act as trusted coordinators of responsible data sharing.”

The report concludes that trusted interoperability does not require a standardised approach that suits every commodity. We found three different pathways can enable this:

1. Reusing a shared reference where one exists – such as the ICO Mark for coffee
2. Connecting multiple references where traceability is fragmented
3. Preserving existing links where operational traceability is already strong – for example in bananas, connecting packing-list information with logistics identifiers.

Explore the report’s findings and recommendations here, or read more about the project here.