Ferrero is putting satellite technology at the centre of its global supply chain, using geospatial data from Starling to track ingredient sourcing across some of the world's most vulnerable ecosystems. The tool now gives the confectionery giant real-time visibility into roughly 230,000 plantations spanning cocoa, palm oil and coffee supply chains.
A Satellite-Powered Supply Chain
Using Starling — a satellite monitoring platform developed by Airbus Defence and Space in partnership with the Earthworm Foundation — Ferrero monitors complex agricultural networks spanning thousands of kilometres across some of the world's most vulnerable ecosystems.
For the past decade, Ferrero has leveraged Starling's high-resolution satellite imagery to maintain real-time visibility over the landscapes where its ingredients are grown. By translating satellite data into actionable intelligence, the company equips its analysts, tech experts and field teams to identify landscape shifts by tracking environmental evolution and agricultural changes across global sourcing regions.
The platform also guides on-the-ground action, helping teams engage directly with suppliers on localised farming practices and drive data-backed sourcing decisions that provide precise context on ingredient origins and local conditions.
This tech-first approach modernises Ferrero's founding principle of 'Sacco Conosciuto' — a practice dating back to 1946 centred on knowing exactly where materials originate and how they are produced.
"Thanks to this technology, we are able to deploy monitoring across farms and plantations in our supply chains, at scale. Today, Starling allows us to map and monitor around 230,000 plantations across three commodities — cocoa, palm oil and coffee — in line with EU Deforestation Regulation requirements."— Nicola Somenzi, Head of Responsible Sourcing, Ferrero
Current Monitoring Scope
Starling currently supports Ferrero in monitoring three key ingredients: cocoa, palm oil and coffee. The platform provides tools to verify forest impact across supply chains, with verification designed for industry-wide use.
The technology gives Ferrero access to geospatial information that simply wasn't available when the company first established its sourcing principles nearly eight decades ago, adding a modern layer of precision to a long-standing traceability philosophy.