A new digital tracking system is being trialled in the Netherlands to enhance transparency in the palm oil supply chain and support compliance with the upcoming EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).
The SmartTrace platform, developed by palm oil producer Golden Agri-Resources (GAR), aims to ensure that imported palm oil meets stringent sustainability and traceability standards. One of the first companies to pilot the system is Verborg Group, which operates a modern tropical oil refinery in Farmsum. The Dutch company formed a strategic partnership with GAR in early 2024 to supply high-quality, deforestation-free oils to European customers.
As part of the trial, a shipment of 9,500 metric tonnes of palm oil products was delivered to Verborg Group’s refinery in late February. The shipment is fully traceable to plantations in Indonesia, marking a significant step in verifying the origins of palm oil ahead of the EUDR’s implementation.
Building Trust in Supply Chains
The EUDR requires companies importing key commodities, including palm oil, to provide detailed due diligence reports confirming that products are free from deforestation risk and produced in accordance with local laws.
GAR’s SmartTrace platform is designed to simplify this process, offering greater visibility into complex supply chains. Using blockchain technology, the system tracks each component of a shipment down to the plantation level, allowing operators to authenticate sourcing data.
The platform builds on GAR’s long-standing investment in supply chain traceability. The company already tracks 100% of palm oil from its own estates to the plantation level and has extended traceability to 99% of its entire Indonesian supply chain. Other commodities, including soy, sugar, coconut, and sunflower oil, are also fully traceable to the mill.
Goedhart Borgesius, Director of Verborg Group, stressed the importance of the trial in reassuring European buyers about EUDR readiness. “We recognise the responsibility we have to our customers to provide sustainably-produced, high-quality and deforestation-free tropical oils. This shipment marks a milestone in our ability to demonstrate these attributes and offer our customers confidence that they are helping to eradicate deforestation risk from the tropical oil supply chain.”
Simplifying Compliance with Digital Solutions
Beyond verifying product origins, SmartTrace is designed to assist buyers in meeting regulatory requirements efficiently. The platform generates detailed compliance reports, helping companies complete due diligence statements for the EU’s TRACES system.
Maarten van der Hoeven, GAR’s Head of Europe and Latin America, highlighted the system’s benefits: “By digitising the due diligence process, SmartTrace helps our customers collect, manage and share the data needed to meet EUDR requirements. In a complex supply chain where compliance data for one shipment can contain millions of data points, we want to ensure our customers can access accurate, efficient and trusted data to demonstrate their palm oil is deforestation-free.”
The platform’s adaptability extends beyond the EUDR, with potential applications in other regulatory frameworks requiring complex data tracking and reporting.
With the trial now underway, Verborg Group and GAR hope that SmartTrace will set a new benchmark for supply chain transparency and regulatory compliance in the palm oil industry.