NEW REPORT PUBLISHED: Ground Truths to Written Rules: Bridging On-Farm Practices and Certification Standards
29/11/2025
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New Nuffield Report Sets Out a Global Roadmap for More Effective Sustainability Certification
Ground Truths to Written Rules: Bridging On-Farm Practices and Certification Standards
By Ingrid C. C. Graziano -- 2024 Nuffield Brazil Scholar
Supported by TIAA
Nuffield International is pleased to announce the publication of Ingrid Graziano's final report, Ground Truths to Written Rules: Bridging On-Farm Practices and Certification Standards, a global investigation into how sustainability certifications influence agricultural practices, supply chains and consumer trust. Ingrid's scholarship was generously supported by TIAA.
Travelling across Latin America, Europe, Asia and North America, Ingrid explored certification systems in coffee, soy and cotton to understand whether these frameworks are genuinely driving sustainable outcomes -- or whether increasing complexity, overlapping schemes and administrative burdens are limiting their potential. Her work reinforces a central conclusion:
sustainability certification can be a powerful tool, but only when grounded in real-world farming realities and measured by actual impact.
Key Insights from the Report
Ingrid identifies several global challenges facing certification systems today:
Too many overlapping labels (over 440 ecolabels worldwide), creating confusion and reducing consumer trust.
Administrative and audit burdens that fall disproportionately on farmers, especially smallholders.
A tendency toward checklist compliance rather than measurable improvements in soil health, biodiversity or social conditions.
Certification being used to prove deforestation-free status, particularly in Brazil, while other critical sustainability dimensions risk being overlooked.
At the same time, her findings highlight a major global shift -- from practice-based certification to outcome-based verification, supported by digital traceability, ESG reporting requirements, and new regulatory frameworks such as the EU Deforestation Regulation. This evolution presents significant opportunities to strengthen credibility, improve climate resilience and better reward farmers for real environmental stewardship.
A Practical Path Forward
Ingrid's report proposes four clear recommendations for the future of certification:
1.Put farmers at the centre, ensuring systems are accessible, context-appropriate and supported by training and technical assistance.
2.Simplify and harmonise certification schemes, reducing duplication and strengthening consumer understanding.
3.Integrate certification into broader sustainability and regenerative agriculture strategies, rather than treating it as a compliance exercise.
4.Shift from practice-oriented to outcome-oriented approaches, measuring real improvements in environmental and social performance.
Recognising Our Sponsor
Nuffield International acknowledges TIAA for their generous sponsorship and commitment to agricultural leadership. Their support enabled Ingrid to complete a truly global investigation with meaningful relevance for farmers, companies and policymakers.
A Valuable Contribution to the Global Conversation
Ingrid's work provides a timely and practical roadmap for how certification systems can evolve to remain credible, inclusive and impactful. Her findings reinforce a shared goal across the global Nuffield network: ensuring that agricultural systems are not only productive, but resilient, transparent and centred on the people who steward the land.
The full report is now available to download.
