Founded 185 years ago from a single German factory, Nordzucker is now one of Europe’s largest sugar producers, with an international footprint spanning 21 production sites across Europe and Australia. Nordzucker currently employs around 4,000 people and makes more than 250 sugar-based products for both industrial and consumer markets.
To turn its rich history into future advantage, the company continues to evolve its operations and grower services through a long-term partnership with Stefanini.
Building on a Strong Foundation
The collaboration between Nordzucker and Stefanini originally began with an IT operations transformation, modernizing processes and deploying a new ITSM backbone. SophieX was introduced along with a 24/7 incident‑management team. These changes improved support accessibility for end users and standardized service across regions.
Evolving CropConnect for Growers and Operations
After modernizing IT operations, Nordzucker set its sights on accelerating value for growers and the business via application development. CropConnect is a digital platform that plays a central role in Nordzucker’s agricultural operations and engagement with growers.
Nordzucker turned to Stefanini for an initial project that resulted in successful feature development for CropConnect, strengthening mutual trust. These positive results led to expanding the engagement to full application support and ongoing development of the CropConnect platform.
Stefanini supports application development and system maintenance while continuously improving reliability, scalability, and performance. Enhancements are prioritized to deliver business value, align with Nordzucker’s growth strategy, and meet the evolving needs of growers across regions.
Smooth Transition and Clear Communication
From day one, Stefanini provided a clear plan, roadmap, and defined responsibilities. Multiple transition sessions were organized for knowledge transfer and alignment with an emphasis on transparency, communication, and collaboration throughout the process. The initial transition phase was smooth and well-structured; operational collaboration began shortly thereafter.
Early Results: Stability and Momentum
The partnership quickly delivered tangible outcomes. Nordzucker saw successful releases in the first months following the transition and improvements in operational performance. With a steady release cadence and clear communication channels, the teams established a reliable foundation to scale new features and respond to business needs faster.
AI and Innovation Powering the Next Chapter
Artificial intelligence is moving from concept to practical impact within Nordzucker’s agricultural ecosystem. With Stefanini’s AI capabilities, the plan is to integrate AI within Agri applications to increase automation, augment intelligence, and elevate user experience. By leveraging data and analytics, the partnership aims to enable smarter decisions and deliver measurable business value, making the CropConnect platform more intelligent, efficient, and future-ready.
Digital Ways of Working that Scale
Beyond technology, the collaboration is grounded in people and process. Clear communication, structured knowledge transfer, and a shared commitment to operational excellence have created a strong delivery model. This mindset – connecting teams, improving handovers, and enabling continuous improvement – helps accelerate innovation while safeguarding day-to-day performance.
Reliable Today, future-ready Tomorrow
Nordzucker and Stefanini are demonstrating how a clear vision, transparent collaboration, and purposeful innovation can move an industry forward. With a smooth transition, early release success, and a shared focus on AI and data-driven decision-making, the partnership is delivering results today while preparing Nordzucker for the future.
