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A master's thesis from Aalborg University
Book cover


english

Translated title

How to achieve a sustainable supply chain in the fur industry

Author

Term

4. term

Publication year

2017

Submitted on

Pages

67

Abstract

This thesis examines how the fur industry can build a more sustainable supply chain amid rising expectations from consumers and other stakeholders. It adopts a case study approach that combines secondary sources with primary data from interviews and observations. The study aims to describe current sustainability practices, identify key risks and challenges, and propose actions with a particular emphasis on environmental impacts and animal welfare/rights. Findings indicate significant environmental impacts from both farming and processing, greater attention to animal welfare on Danish farms compared with Chinese farms, and overproduction leading to waste and large inventories across the chain. The study also highlights weak top-management commitment to sustainability among Chinese manufacturers and a breakdown in traceability after auction houses. Based on these insights, it recommends extending traceability across the entire supply chain, fostering open stakeholder communication, integrating the chain with stronger information sharing, investing in technologies to reduce environmental impacts, and prolonging product lifecycles through new market segments (e.g., menswear) and upcycling. Overall, the thesis provides a practice-oriented basis for balancing economic, environmental, and social considerations within the fur industry’s supply chain.

Dette speciale undersøger, hvordan pelsbranchen kan opnå en mere bæredygtig forsyningskæde i lyset af stigende krav fra forbrugere og andre interessenter. Udgangspunktet er et casebaseret studie, der kombinerer sekundære kilder med primære data indsamlet via interviews og observationer. Formålet er at beskrive, hvordan bæredygtighed i dag implementeres i forsyningskæden, at identificere centrale risici og udfordringer, samt at foreslå tiltag med særligt fokus på miljøpåvirkninger og dyrevelfærd/-rettigheder. Undersøgelsen peger på betydelige miljøpåvirkninger fra både pelsdyrhold og forarbejdning, på at danske farme generelt har større fokus på dyrevelfærd end kinesiske farme, og på at overproduktion skaber spild og store lagre i kæden. Derudover fremhæves lav ledelsesforankring af bæredygtighed hos kinesiske producenter og et brud i sporbarheden efter auktionshusene. På denne baggrund foreslås bl.a. at udvide sporbarheden til hele kæden, fremme åben kommunikation med interessenter, integrere forsyningskæden og øge informationsdeling, investere i ny teknologi for at reducere miljøpåvirkninger samt forlænge pelsprodukters levetid via nye markedssegmenter (f.eks. herretøj) og upcycling. Resultaterne giver et praktisk orienteret udgangspunkt for at balancere økonomiske, miljømæssige og sociale hensyn i pelsindustriens forsyningskæde.

[This apstract has been generated with the help of AI directly from the project full text]