Add a supplier
Overview
This page covers creating a single supplier. Suppliers are especially important for EUDR, because they are the source of the evidence behind your due diligence. One supplier record serves CBAM and EUDR alike.
If you have many suppliers to add, use the bulk upload instead (see Bulk upload suppliers).
Before you start
- A role with permission to manage master data.
- The supplier's legal name and address.
- A unique Identifier for the supplier, ideally the one from your own systems. kolum does not generate one for you.
- The name, phone, and email of a contact person.
- For Catena-X data exchange, the supplier's BPNL.
🟢 Why this matters. Suppliers are where your EUDR evidence comes from: the geolocation of production plots, proof of legal production, and supporting documents. Creating the supplier correctly, with a reachable contact, is what lets you request and receive that data later.
Step by step
1. Open the create form.
Go to Suppliers in the sidebar and select Add New. The Create new supplier page opens.
2. Enter the supplier details.
Complete Name and Identifier (see the reference below), and the optional BPN if the supplier exchanges data over Catena-X.
3. Enter the address and contact.
Complete the address (Postal Code, City, Country are required) and the Default Contact Person (First name, Last name, Phone, and Email are required). Under Connected Companies you can already select the companies of yours that buy from this supplier, or leave it empty and let connections arise from your purchase orders and imports.
4. Create the supplier.
Select Create Supplier. It appears in the Suppliers list and opens on its detail page.
Field reference
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Name | Yes | Legal or trading name. |
| Identifier | Yes | Your own identifier for the supplier, unique within your account. It is the key used in the supplier upload, the supplier production facilities upload and the imports upload, so decide on a convention before you start. Reusing an existing value is rejected with a clear message. |
| BPN (Business Partner Number, BPNL) | Catena-X only | Needed only if the supplier exchanges data over the Catena-X network. |
| Address | Postal Code, City, Country required | Street name, street number and PO box are optional. |
| Default Contact Person | Yes | First name, Last name, Phone, Email. The email is where the connection invitation is sent. |
| Connected Companies | No | The companies of yours that purchase from this supplier. Can be left empty. |
After you create the supplier
- Invite the supplier to connect, so they can share data with you directly (see Invite a supplier to connect).
- Capture the production locations and documents on the EUDR tab (see Provide production locations and documents).
Tips
- Use your own supplier IDs as the Identifier, so uploads, articles and imports reconcile cleanly. To see which identifiers are already in use, export your supplier list first.
- Add the correct contact email from the start; it is what the connection invitation is sent to.
Troubleshooting
- Create Supplier is not available. Name, Identifier, Postal Code, City, Country, and the contact person's details must all be filled in.
- "Identifier already taken". Another supplier in your account uses that value. Pick a different Identifier and save again; kolum checks this when you submit, not while you type.
ℹ️ Regulatory context. Suppliers are the source of your EUDR evidence: the geolocation of production plots (Article 9), proof of legal production, and supporting documents. A correctly set-up supplier is what lets you collect it. See the consolidated EUDR text.
Common Questions
What's new
Suppliers for EUDR are created in the unified Suppliers section with one straightforward form: name, your own identifier, address, a default contact person and optional connected companies. There is no role or supplier type to pick any more.