The Sustainable Trade Summit (SUTRA Summit) was launched in response to the persistent challenges faced by businesses in comprehensively engaging with their supply chains to improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers and agricultural ecosystems nationwide. While some significant projects aimed at restoring the earning capacity of smallholder farmers are underway, there remains a substantial gap in meeting the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as businesses. Issues like climate-resilient seeds, improved farm-level inputs, dwindling biodiversity in croplands, inadequate income for smallholders, and environmental inequalities persist at the grassroots level.

One major challenge is the lack of consumer awareness, resulting in companies not taking sufficient steps to ensure responsible sourcing of agri-commodities. Merely tracing the origin of agri-commodities to specific farmers or farmlands is insufficient, as it doesn't reflect the overall well-being of farmers or land productivity.

The Sutra Summit, along with its capacity-building, advisory, benchmarking, and responsible sourcing framework management activities, aims to revolutionize how companies operate in this sphere. The inaugural Sutra Summit, held on December 16-17, 2023, at Le Meridien in Gurgaon, initiated pre-competitive collaboration among companies on sustainable and responsible sourcing. It provided a platform for thought leadership, showcasing innovative ideas, and fostering collaboration among participating companies, civil society organizations, government representatives, and other stakeholders.

In 2024, the Sutra Summit continues to be a thriving forum, facilitating cross-sectoral collaboration and enabling stakeholders to set and systematically meet responsible sourcing targets throughout commodity harvest cycles. It remains committed to driving progress across various parameters in the realm of responsible sourcing.