A new EcoVadis report reveals that 80% of Tier-1 suppliers lack documented processes to identify or manage sustainability risks deeper in their supply chains. Just 2% offer accessible grievance mechanisms for workers in lower tiers, and fewer than 1% share granular, decision-grade sustainability data with buyers. While environmental scores rose 9.6 points on average between 2021 and 2025, Scope 3 upstream emissions reporting is missing at 73% of firms, and only 20% conduct on-site audits — unchanged since 2021. Sixty-eight percent of corporate buyers deploy AI for sustainable procurement, yet 30% of suppliers provide no carbon data.
According to www.supplychainbrain.com, four out of five (80%) Tier-1 suppliers rated by EcoVadis have no documented process for identifying or managing sustainability risks beyond their direct operations — particularly in deeper tiers of the supply chain.
Sustainability Gaps Persist Beyond Direct Operations
The EcoVadis Sustainability Ratings Index, released on July 1, 2026, draws on nearly 200,000 scorecards from over 100,000 companies rated globally between 2021 and 2025. While companies show measurable progress within their own facilities — environmental scores rose an average of 9.6 points over four years — that momentum collapses when assessing upstream and downstream value chains. Only 2% of rated companies maintain an external grievance mechanism accessible to workers deeper in the supply chain, and fewer than 1% report granular, decision-grade sustainability data to their buyers.
Scope 3 Emissions and Human Rights Tracking Lag
73% of companies lack upstream Scope 3 emissions reporting, and 77% do not track downstream impacts. Meanwhile, labor and human rights performance remains the strongest theme overall, with a global average score of 59.5 — supported by formal DEI policies at 80% of companies and employee health and safety policies at 78%. Yet these internal safeguards fail to extend meaningfully into procurement: only 46% require suppliers to sign a sustainability code of conduct, and just 20% conduct on-site audits — a figure unchanged over four years.
Data Readiness Undermines AI Adoption
Despite widespread deployment of artificial intelligence in sustainable procurement — 68% of corporate buyers now use AI tools — the underlying data infrastructure remains critically underdeveloped. Carbon data validation is cited as the top AI application by 62% of those buyers. However, 30% of suppliers provide no carbon data at all, and 26% supply only aggregated estimates. As Sylvain Guyoton, chief rating officer at EcoVadis, explained:
“Organizations have built sophisticated tools to analyze supplier sustainability data. The suppliers either don’t have that data or can’t report it in a form the tools can use. Better software does not close that gap. The measurement problem lives in the supply base itself, and closing it requires sustained engagement over time: structured assessment, scored performance, and documented follow-through.” — Sylvain Guyoton, chief rating officer at EcoVadis
Procurement Practices Remain Paper-Based
Verification continues to rely heavily on administrative checks rather than empirical validation. 42% of companies still depend on unverified supplier questionnaires, and fewer than one in five conduct field-level assessments. This disconnect undermines regulatory compliance efforts and exposes buyers to growing legal and reputational risk — especially as frameworks like the EU’s CSDDD mandate due diligence across entire value chains. The report notes that companies treating supplier engagement as an ongoing process — not a one-time compliance exercise — achieve significantly higher verification rates and more accurate impact measurement.
Source: Supply Chain Brain
Compiled from international media by the SCI.AI editorial team.
