Can Mars' AI Redefine Climate-Smart Sourcing?

As climate volatility intensifies and global supply networks grow more complex, AI is becoming a critical tool for organisations seeking to build resilience into their procurement operations.

The technology is now moving beyond pilot programmes to become embedded in core strategies, enabling supply chain forecasting AI to predict disruptions before they occur and allowing businesses to shift from reactive to proactive decision-making.

Mars Food & Nutrition's "Raising Rice Right" platform offers a clear example of how digital supply chain tools are being deployed at scale.

According to Mars, the US$20m initiative targets one of the world's most climate-vulnerable crops and demonstrates how supplier intelligence, risk prediction AI and direct farmer partnerships are reshaping procurement for 2026.

Mars is transitioning away from traditional flood irrigation, which is both water-intensive and a major source of methane emissions, toward Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD) methods.

AI and data tools are being provided to farmers to monitor soil moisture and weather patterns in real-time, allowing them to time their irrigation schedules with precision.

According to Mars, these tools could reduce water use by 30% and greenhouse gas emissions by 40%, all while protecting crop yields. This approach illustrates how supply chain forecasting AI is being applied not just at the corporate level, but directly at the point of production, giving procurement leaders visibility into environmental and operational performance simultaneously.

Supplier intelligence across tier-2 and tier-3 networks

A persistent challenge in 2026 supply chains is understanding exactly where raw materials originate, particularly when sourcing from smallholder farmers across fragmented geographies.

Mars is addressing this through what it describes as "granular intelligence," working directly with thousands of smallholder farmers in Thailand, Pakistan and India.

More than 66% of participants in certain programmes are women, reflecting the company's focus on financial and technical support for those most vulnerable to climate change.

By embedding risk prediction AI into daily sourcing operations, Mars can identify which specific growing regions, or "supply sheds", could be at risk of failure due to erratic rainfall or temperature swings. This allows procurement teams to shift sourcing or provide targeted support before a shortage materialises, a shift that could transform operational resilience from a reactive process into a predictive one.

"Rice is a daily staple for billions of people and provides an income to millions of farmers around the world, but climate change is placing extraordinary pressure on this vital crop," says Dale Creaser, Global Vice President of Supply Chain of Mars Food & Nutrition.  

"As the owners of Ben’s Original, one of the world’s largest rice brands, we have a responsibility to act. This US$20m investment is about backing our farmers with the tools, technology and training support they need to adapt and thrive in a changing environment.

It’s also about future-proofing our business to ensure we’re building a resilient food supply chain. We're committed to making rice farming more sustainable and protecting yields and livelihoods for our farmers today and for generations to come."

Regenerative agriculture

Beyond rice, Mars has committed to transitioning one million acres of farmland to regenerative practices by 2030.

Through partnerships with organisations such as Soil Capital and Cargill, the company is using AI-backed systems to track carbon sequestration and soil health across Europe and the United States.

Mars is also piloting "outcome-based" farming models, where farmers are compensated not only for the crop itself but for the environmental benefits they generate, such as carbon storage. This creates a more stable and resilient income for farmers, which in turn could secure supply continuity for Mars even as climate patterns become less predictable.

From transactional to relational sourcing

This strategy represents a shift from transactional sourcing – buying from the lowest bidder – to relational sourcing, where businesses invest in the technology and survival of their suppliers.

For supply chain leaders, this could be the ultimate form of operational resilience: ensuring that even as external conditions deteriorate, the foundation of the supply chain remains intact.

According to Mars, nearly 25% of its global cereal purchases in 2025 and 2026 are expected to come from "climate-smart" supply sheds, a significant increase from previous years. This statistic reflects how quickly digital supply chain tools are being integrated into procurement strategy at enterprise scale.

This topic will form part of GEP’s executive dinner, focusing on how AI supports faster and more resilient supply chain ecosystems.

Register your interest to join industry leaders at Kimpton Fitzroy London on 3 March 2026.

Attendance is strictly limited to CPOs, Heads of Procurement and senior decision-makers who meet the event criteria. Seats are limited.

Event details at a glance

Event: GEP Executive Procurement Dinner
Theme: Unsticking Procurement - AI Strategies for Impactful Teams
Date: Tuesday 3 March 2026
Time: 7-9pm
Location: Kimpton Fitzroy, London

Register your interest here.