Innovating for Airbus & Barry Callebaut's Traceable Cocoa

Airbus Defence and Space is partnering with global chocolate and cocoa manufacturer Barry Callebaut, in a move to help develop deforestation-free supply chains.

Through real-time satellite insights, Airbus is helping the chocolatier to track its resources and ensure it does not cause harm to its environment.

As a result, Barry Callebaut can maintain supply chain integrity and react with agility to any demands.

Supply chain strategy

Airbus Defence and Space is a defence and space manufacturing subsidiary of Airbus, creating innovative and effective solutions for its customers. Airbus works to create sustainable aerospace, to help create a safe and united world. It is working towards developing lighter, safer and more fuel-efficient aircrafts.

Now, it is partnering with Barry Callebaut, a global chocolate and cocoa manufacturer, to help develop sustainable supply chains. The Barry Callebaut Group implements sustainable solutions across its manufacturing processes. The company has made strong commitments to sustainable sourcing as part of its 'Forever Chocolate' programme. 

The collaboration includes Airbus Defence and Space's satellite-based deforestation monitoring across the chocolatier's entire cocoa supply chain. It will be using the space imagery-enabled Starling solution to monitor the plantations, leading to a comprehensive risk assessment across Barry Callebaut's global operations. 

“Beyond being a trusted, data-driven solution provider, Airbus is a strategic partner for Barry Callebaut in monitoring deforestation risks,” says Juliette Cody, Director for Global Sustainability Programs at Barry Callebaut.

“The insights provided by Starling have become a cornerstone of our strategy to advance our forest positive commitments.”

By gaining these insights, the chocolate manufacturer can be aware of its cocoa supply, allowing it to shift strategy and plan ahead for disruption. As it has satellite imagery, it allows Barry Callebaut full visibility into its resource capabilities and the sustainability of its work. This therefore means it can act responsibly and mitigate future risk by taking any necessary action today.

Real-time insights

Starling began as a collaborative venture between Airbus and Earthworm Foundation in 2016. It is a geospatial solution which measures the environmental impact across supply chains, helping companies deliver on their deforestation-free commitments. 

It uses satellite imagery to monitor agricultural supply chains and provide data on changes to forest cover. It provides companies with accurate and actionable data to help them engage with suppliers, mitigate risks and ensure their own compliance.

Starling provides Barry Callebaut with information on all its cocoa plots, automatically analysing its supply chain data. It produces detail land-cover maps, which can differentiate between natural forest, agroforestry, plantation and other land types. Through this, it reduces the number of false positive alerts. 

Eric Even, Head of Space Digital at Airbus Defence and Space, adds: “We are pleased to support Barry Callebaut through the Starling solution, providing optical satellite imagery at various resolutions ranging from 10m to Pléiades Neo’s 30cm resolution.

"With real eyes in the sky, satellite imagery empowers organisations to make informed decisions and maintain transparency across global supply chains.”

It uses AI-powered algorithms to continuously monitor changes within forest cover, in order to spot emerging deforestation issues and provide conversion alerts which could breach the company's regulations or forest policy. Starling uses high-resolution satellite imagery at the plot level, meaning thorough evidence verification to prevent the need for field investigation. 

The solution also conducts risk assessments to identify at-risk areas, using information from historical land use and practices. Starling offers reliable, real-time data insights to help its suppliers, meaning that Barry Callebaut can make informed decisions to enable it to meet its sustainability goals effectively.