Improving environmental practices in agricultural supply chains: The role of company-led standards
Food retailers and manufacturers are increasingly committing to address agricultural sustainability issues in their supply chains. In place of using established eco-certifications, many companies define their own supply chain sustainability standards. Scholars remain divided on whether we should expect such company-led programs to affect change. We use a major food retailer as a critical case to evaluate the effectiveness of a companyled supply chain standard in improving environmental farm management practices. We find that the companyled standard increases the adoption of most environmental best management practices among the company's fruit, vegetable and flower growers in South Africa.