The SPAR Group is one of our longest standing clients. We have worked on many projects over the years, with a focus on supporting their sustainability agenda. Two of the most interesting and complex projects have been the Rural Hub and the cage-free egg initiative.
The Moss Group has been SPAR’s strategy development partner for the Rural Hub since its inception, and we have been intimately involved in developing each iteration of the strategy and operating model from 2016 to 2025. We have faced many challenges along the way and had to adapt the strategy and operating model several times based on lessons learnt. However, the Rural Hub Model as it stands today has proven to effectively overcome the key barriers for smaller-scale farmers entering the formal agricultural system by addressing the major issues of market access, technical capability and access to finance. The participating farmers are now consistently profitable, effectively supplying formal markets and are delivering above-average yields.
In 2021, SPAR Group initiated a collaborative engagement with 3 other major retail groups in South Africa to explore the potential of shifting egg production in the country from caged to cage-free. The Moss Group was engaged to facilitate this collaboration and to conduct the necessary research to inform a way forward. In 2022, the other retailers chose not to pursue the cage-free agenda, but SPAR remained committed. We have subsequently been involved in conducting further research for SPAR, facilitating discussions with SPAR, key industry role players and animal welfare organisations, and conducting strategy sessions with the internal SPAR business required to enable them to commit to a shift to cage-free egg production in the near future.