Gerald Tan, the visionary behind Agridence, is transforming agri-commodity supply chains with technology that drives transparency, empowers smallholders, and creates a sustainable agricultural future.
A Spark in Supply Chains: How It All Began
Tan, a seasoned expert in natural rubber procurement, saw firsthand how opaque, antiquated systems—characterised by trades executed through phone calls and messaging apps—left the industry ripe for disruption.
Having spent years at the forefront of the industry, Tan envisioned a digital gateway that could bring transparency, trust, and efficiency to this traditional trade.
In 2018, he founded Agridence in Singapore, initially named HeveaConnect, to begin this transformation. Originally focused on natural rubber, the company built a secure B2B trading platform, traceability tools, sustainability dashboards, and educational content for smallholders—bringing visibility even down to the shipping instruction level.
Building Trust Through Technology
From the outset, Agridence combined robust technology with deep sector insight. Their platform didn’t just connect buyers and sellers; it also enabled live position updates, audit trails, risk management, and a sustainability dashboard that offered real-time visibility into supply chains.
By 2023, Agridence had facilitated the trading of 1 million tons of natural rubber—a clear sign of how widely the platform had been adopted and how much users trusted it.
Tan and his team cultivated deep relationships across the industry, positioning Agridence as more than just a software provider, but a trusted, high-integrity partner.
Agridence Evolves with a Bold Step Beyond Rubber
As the startup matured, so did its ambitions. In October 2022, HeveaConnect rebranded to Agridence, a name symbolising its broader vision beyond rubber.
The company also established Agridence Rubber Pte Ltd (ARPL), giving the natural rubber arm dedicated focus and governance. ARPL was structured with a balanced Board of Advisors—buying and selling representatives plus an optional independent member—to reinforce neutrality and guard against misuse of data.
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From Rubber to a Multi‑Commodity Vision
The success with rubber quickly paved the way for expansion into other key agri‑commodities.
In late 2023, Agridence was tapped to lead the RSPO’s digital transformation—creating a unified system for trade, traceability, and certification of sustainable palm oil. This move not only marked market confidence in its technology, but also validated its capability to scale across commodities.
By February 2025, the platform for palm oil—a system known as RSPO prisma—went live and began supporting certification and traceability for tens of thousands of users.
Alongside this, Agridence became the technology partner for the Sustainable Coconut Partnership’s SCP Links platform, streamlining sustainability reporting and audits. And in cocoa, the company launched smallholder mapping programs across Africa—breathing digital life into supply chains once hidden from view.
Interest in other agri‑commodities like coffee, cashew, and sugarcane was also growing, as Agridence readied itself to take the modular traceability infrastructure worldwide.
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What Agridence Actually Does
This Singapore-based Agridence is an agri-tech platform transforming how global agricultural supply chains operate. By digitising the entire process, it enables full traceability, supports ESG compliance, and simplifies sustainable reporting.
Its cloud-native, API-ready software combines AI analytics, geospatial mapping, and mobile data capture to provide a powerful, easy-to-integrate solution.
From multinational companies and traders to processors and smallholder farmers, the users rely on Agridence to meet evolving regulations and certifications like the EU Deforestation Regulation, RSPO, and GPSNR.
The platform has its key features including real-time supply chain visibility, automated ESG risk analysis, seamless smallholder onboarding with digital payments, and smooth interation with ERP and trading systems.
Agridence helps businesses reduce sourcing risks, protect forests, and build a more transparent and responsible agricultural future.
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Vision: Sustainable Supply Chains for a Better Planet
Agridence’s vision is clear: to embed traceability and sustainability into every procurement process—creating data-rich, transparent ecosystems where businesses can spot risks, act on insights, and choose responsibly.
This digital transformation empowers companies to make smarter, greener decisions—and in doing so, protect forests, empower smallholders, and cut risks tied to deforestation and unsustainability.
Tan, grounded by his deep commodity know-how, leads this mission not just as a technologist but as a trusted voice rooted in the industry’s complexities.
With his efforts, Gerald Tan at Agridence continues to grow with one clear goal: to turn complex compliance into a competitive advantage while shaping a sustainable agricultural future.
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