The Seam Newsroom
The U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol has reached agreements with both TextileGenesis and The Seam for the development and integration necessary to create the framework for the Protocol Credit Management System (PCMS).
The combination of these two platforms will position the Trust Protocol and its PCMS to meet the demands for both supply chain transparency and increased access to sustainable fibers and aggregated data from participating farms.
Increased sustainability will drive commodity production in the coming decades, spurred by increasing environmental consciousness among consumers.
From crops to clothes, agricultural products are not exempt from increasing preferences for sustainable brands, starting with a desire by the public to know where products are sourced. Purchasing habits are likely to continue to shift in favor of retailers and suppliers who give a greater account of the contributions they are making toward a cleaner and safer planet.
There are clear moral and economic interests for these stories of sustainability to be told. But like every compelling story, the ag industry must not only tell, but also show by accelerating its shift toward data-driven practices and decisions. Harnessing data requires it to be more readily available, accessible and easy-to-use for producers, distributors and the public alike.
The uncertainty and volatility of a global health crisis has further heightened the hardships of the agriculture world, the ramifications of which are being felt at the farm gate and in under-resourced communities.
That said, struggle often leads to innovation, and there is a unique chance for farmers to pursue new opportunities.
The 2020 AgLaunch VIRTUAL Field Day highlighted the farmers, entrepreneurs and communities that are working together to make the agricultural value chain more sustainable and resilient, while also demonstrating that a strong network of farmers is positively impacting rural and urban communities from health care to education.
The Seam was honored to take part in this event, and our CEO Mark Pryor spoke on agtech, focusing on traceability, transparency and sustainability throughout the industry.
Watch the video below. Mark’s segment begins at 34:25.
Field to Market’s Sustainability Metrics and Algorithms Now Integrated into The Seam’s Software Solutions
MEMPHIS, Tenn., June 18, 2020 – The Seam, a leading provider of food and agriculture software solutions, today announced its approval as a Qualified Data Management Partner with Field to Market: The Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture, completing an integration of sustainability metrics powered by Field to Market’s Fieldprint® Platform into The Seam’s latest technology suite. As the Alliance’s newest technology partner, The Seam now offers farmers a unified solution for measuring their sustainability performance and operational efficiency.
This integration is made possible through Field to Market’s Fieldprint Application Programming Interface, which connects sustainability metrics and algorithms from the Fieldprint Platform directly into The Seam’s software solutions, allowing farmers to assess the environmental performance of their management practices against regional, state and national benchmarks for key sustainability indicators.
“We are proud to be recognized as a Qualified Data Management Partner by Field to Market,” said Mark Pryor, Chief Executive Officer at The Seam. “Through this integration, we can provide producers with enhanced, science-based tools that are simple and streamlined for continuous, overall improvement in sustainable farming.”
At first glance, the goal of the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol seems daunting — to reduce the environmental footprint of the industry and make cotton farming more sustainable across the nation.
But, the digital platform usage is surprisingly simple. And it’s laid out, in a way, like TurboTax.
“It’s self-guided, and guides you through, step by step, with progression,” said Mark Pryor, CEO of The Seam. “When you’re keying in your information to do your taxes … they [TurboTax] make it simple. We’re doing that for farmers.”
MEMPHIS, Tenn., March 10, 2020 – The Seam, a leading provider of commodities trading and agriculture software solutions, today announced the general release of the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol, an integrated technology platform that allows U.S. cotton farmers to assess and verify production practices, environmental footprint and measurement of progress toward long-term sustainability goals.
The Trust Protocol was initiated by the National Cotton Council, which represents all U.S. cotton industry segments, including producers, ginners, warehousing, merchants, cooperatives, manufacturers and cottonseed. The Seam was named technology partner of the initiative in November 2018 by the National Cotton Council and the COTTON USA Sustainability Task Force. Mark Pryor, Chief Executive Officer at The Seam, was also named to the inaugural Board of Directors of the Trust Protocol in December 2019 as an advisor.
“We are honored to play a role in the development of technology that fuels the overall mission and message of U.S. agriculture sustainability,” said Pryor. “Working with the National Cotton Council, our goal was to provide a farmer-friendly platform for the cotton industry that promotes economic and environmental stewardship through quantifiable metrics and insights. We look forward to expanding our platform to other agricultural crops, including peanuts and soybeans, in the near future.”
As consumers want to know more about the origin of products, a Memphis organization is using cutting-edge technology to uncover details about one of the Mid-South’s foundational crops: cotton.
In June of this year, The Seam, a provider of trading and technology services to agribusinesses, teamed up with the National Cotton Council — also Memphis based — to roll out a blockchain-based technology that will allow cotton to be traced back to the land where it was grown.
And, the technology can even give details on how the crop was produced.
“There’s an increased need for traceability and transparency in the supply chain,” said Mark Pryor, The Seam’s chairman and CEO. “And in cotton, the brands and the retailers — the Levis and the Brooks Brothers of the world — are demanding more traceable, transparent information throughout the supply chain.”
Read more via the Memphis Business Journal.