Applying Blockchain Technology for Food Traceability

Food traceability had been welcomed to address some concerns related to food scares or fears. Efficient food traceability helps government agencies and those who produce and sell food, in the event of a foodborne illness outbreak or contamination event, quickly find the source of the food contamination. However, traditional food traceability systems are facing problems such as many actors in the food production system (including farmers, food processing companies, and retailers) as well as a lack of technical infrastructures for synchronized food safety monitoring across the food system. Recent research provided ample evidence of the potential of emerging digital advancements such as blockchain technology to alleviate traditional food traceability shortcomings. Blockchain technology is an immutable digital data management system for storing and retrieving generated and linked data in a network (known as blocks). Blockchain with its immutable structure has gained momentum in different industries. There are four major areas in that blockchain could make the food supply chain more efficient. These areas include ensuring data accuracy, improving the efficiency of the food supply chain, enabling smart agriculture, and monitoring food safety. In this entry, the role of blockchain technology in all these areas will be discussed.