Posts Tagged ‘digitization’

The Walmart-IBM software may facilitate digitization, certificate management, and interoperability. But while these things can improve traceability and transparency, the human element of the food supply chain is far more resistant to control and far less predictable. If the ultimate success of the blockchain relies on self-governance, we may be a long way from it being a food traceability backbone we can truly rely on.

Source: Wal-Mart and IBM want to harness blockchain to improve food safety | The New Food Economy, Jessica McKenzie, February 4th, 2018

For example, let’s say dozens of customers fall ill with listeria after eating at a restaurant chain. The restaurant tests the food and discovers raw vegetables are the culprit. Using a blockchain track-and-trace solution, the restaurant will be able to track the serial number associated with the vegetable shipment back to the distributor and then to their original supplier. If they find the vegetables are contaminated, that supplier will immediately be flagged on the blockchain, and anyone who has sourced or bought the vegetables will be made aware of the danger.

Source: 3 Innovative Ways Blockchain Will Build Trust In The Food Industry | Forbes, Samantha Radocchia, April 26, 2018

The whole system gets blamed when something spoils or is contaminated with salmonella or E. coli, or a distribution center fails to store product at the right temperature.“

We need to shift this from fault-finding to fact-finding,” Yiannas  said. “If no one is eating romaine, the entire system loses.”

Source: Could blockchain be the food chain’s answer to romaine lettuce E. coli and other outbreaks?  | Retail | Dallas News, Maria Halkias, June 21, 1018

Gopinath says he sees two major hurdles to bringing blockchain technology to supply chains—and neither of them have to do with the tech itself. The first is simply convincing everyone in the supply chain, which can involve dozens of companies, that switching to a new system is a good idea. “You’ve got to make sure that everybody in the ecosystem gets something out of it,” says Gopinath. “That is very hard and it takes a long time to figure out.”

The second problem is governance. Because blockchains aren’t centralized, it’s difficult to decide how they should be managed. “Who can use the data? Who can see the data? Who can do analytics on the data? Can they share the data? All of these questions have to be answered to the satisfaction of the ecosystem,” says Gopinath. It’s likely going to take years to solve these issues and to square them with government regulators. If someone says that they can be solved in six months, “I’ll just laugh at them, because it’s not going to happen. You can just tell them, sorry, I’m just not going to believe you,” says Gopinath.

Source: Following a Tuna from Fiji to Brooklyn—on the Blockchain | WIRED, Louise Matsakis, May 22, 1018

What is required to move those forward, he said, is a decentralized business network.

“You really have to have common standards and common ways for cars to communicate, to identify themselves and make payments,” Ballinger told CoinDesk, adding:

“But if each auto company is trying to develop its own car wallets or its own way of paying tolls, or providing a ride sharing service, it just doesn’t work; it’s the Tower of Babel.”

Dan Harple, the CEO of Context Labs, who is working closely with Ballinger, said the new consortium’s first step will be to establish a “minimum viable ecosystem” for gaining network effect.

Source: BMW, Ford, GM: World’s Largest Automakers Form Blockchain Coalition – CoinDesk, Ian Allison, May 4, 2018