Beyond Benchmarking: How One Retailer’s Call for Help Sparked a Verified Low-Carbon Revolution in Rice.

“What started as a call for help from one CEO, worried about greenwashing, has become much bigger. We didn’t just write a policy. We built a system. A playbook. A blueprint for change.”– Rob Chester, CEO of Supply Chain In-Sites

The Scope 3 Elephant in the Room

Every major retailer has set Net Zero targets. Some aim for 2050. The more ambitious ones target 2040 or even 2030. But here’s the reality: 93% of emissions in the food industry come from supply chains, not from within a retailer’s own four walls. Yet those supply chains are often the least understood and reported on.

As Rob Chester puts it:

“It doesn’t feel like the activity matches the scale of the challenge. It’s the biggest elephant in the room. And it’s all downstream — in agriculture, in farming, far beyond the first-tier contracts retailers control.”

Worse, marketing teams, not auditors, still write many sustainability reports. The data is often based on theoretical compliance — policies written, checkboxes ticked — rather than proven, on-the-ground behavior. The result? Annual ESG reports that look polished but are worryingly disconnected from real-world impact.

“There’s a risk we’re just polishing the dashboard while the engine’s on fire,” Rob added.

Why Rice? Because It’s Bigger Than You Think

Rice is a staple food for more than half the world’s population, with more than four billion people consuming it weekly. It’s also a major contributor to climate change. According to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), rice accounts for around 10% of global agricultural methane emissions, and more than 700 million tonnes of CO₂e annually.

Rob breaks it down:

“Rice has a greater climate impact than global air travel. That’s how big the problem is. And if you're a retailer in Asia, rice will absolutely be your number one priority in tackling Scope 3 emissions.”

The environmental impact is because of the way rice is traditionally grown — flooded paddies that emit large amounts of methane. The solution? Change the practice. Drying the fields between watering, a technique known as Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD), can dramatically reduce emissions. But here’s the catch — most rice is grown by smallholder farmers with limited resources and minimal digital access. For many, it’s their sole source of income, which makes the idea of changing long-standing practices feel risky and potentially costly. Understandably, there's a real fear of crop loss, so persuading farmers to adopt new methods isn’t just a technical challenge, it’s an emotional and economic one too.

That’s why SCI knew they had to design a solution that worked at ground level — literally..

From Policy to Proof: SCI’s Five-Stage Method

The retailer who contacted SCI didn’t want another slide deck; they wanted proof. So, in just six months, SCI designed and delivered a working system. Their five-stage method is practical, scalable, and, most importantly, grounded in reality.

1. Supply Chain Mapping – Understanding where the emissions come from and why.

2. Define Process Changes – This meant drying fields, adjusting fertiliser use, and managing water more efficiently for rice.

3. Farmer Training – Hands-on, culturally aware coaching to support behaviour change.

4. Lightweight Tech – A bespoke app for farmers to upload daily images and data, creating a verified record.

5. Continuous Measurement – Real-time coaching, monitoring, and escalation to correct mistakes as they happen.

“We had one farmer who was over-flooding the fields early in the cycle,” Rob explained. “Our team saw it in a daily photo, reached out immediately, and helped them correct it that day. That’s the power of real-time visibility.”

In six months, SCI reduced greenhouse gas emissions across 30 farms by 36% without compromising crop yield or quality. With 95% verified compliance, this is a level of assurance no policy-only approach can offer.

The Greenwash Antidote

Greenwashing isn’t just a reputational risk anymore — it’s a legal one. The EU’s new Green Claims Directive and the UK’s CMA guidelines now demand that any environmental claim be backed up with solid evidence. Assumptions won’t cut it.

“The minute someone says ‘100% compliance’ in agriculture, my alarm bells go off,” said Rob. “It's just not credible unless you validate in real time.”

SCI’s approach combines human trust with tech transparency. Farmers upload daily images of water levels, fertiliser use, and field conditions. The app is deliberately simple. It’s built to work in low-connectivity areas and is supported by a coaching network, including top-performing farmers who help train others through peer-led video content.

This human-tech blend allows retailers to move from assumptions to assurance without waiting for once-a-year audits or unverified claims from intermediaries.

What’s Next? Scaling the Playbook

The pilot worked with 30 farmers. The next phase will support 1,000 farms, covering half of the retailer’s private-label rice. After that, SCI plans to expand the model to other commodities , such as shrimp, salmon, and apparel—sectors that also have high Scope 3 impacts.

See the video impact report here.

“We’re not just scaling the programme,” Rob said. “We’re building a repeatable, adaptable playbook that can travel across categories and countries.”

Scaling doesn’t mean abandoning personal relationships. It means embedding what works — verified methodology, peer coaching, real-time data — into a flexible framework. And SCI’s method is already drawing attention from other global brands seeking a more innovative

Creating Solutions ~ Not Just Measuring Risk

way to hit Net Zero.

“Nobody wants a one-and-done pilot anymore. You need something you can stand up to scrutiny — and scale at pace.”

A Final Word to Retailers

For ESG leads, procurement directors, or compliance officers who feel overwhelmed, Rob’s message is simple:

“I’ve been in your shoes. I know how hard this is. It’s messy, it’s sticky — but it is solvable. We’ve built something smart, fast, and grounded in the real world. It works.”

SCI’s approach isn’t theory. It’s a working, auditable, scalable system that has already delivered proven results in less than a year. It’s not just about rice. It’s about setting a new standard for how Scope 3 can be tackled — practically, transparently, and with integrity.

“We can’t confuse effort with results anymore. This is about measurable impact. And we all owe it to our kids to move faster.”

📩 Want to learn more? Visit https://www.scinsites.com/ or contact the team to explore how this methodology could be applied to your supply chain.