Invest in a Greener Future: Join MCB Ventures DAO in Reshaping the Global Food Supply Chain with Trailblazing Blockchain and IoT Technologies
The Challenges in the Food Supply Chain
The agricultural and food supply chain faces numerous challenges. To address these issues, leading experts in blockchain and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies are collaborating with the agricultural industry to enhance its efficiency, transparency, and safety, and MCB Ventures DAO is at the forefront of this transformative journey.
The global food supply is complex and sprawling, often spanning multiple continents. With the distance food travels, the chances of spoilage increase, leading to alarming levels of food wastage - around 14% before products even reach store shelves. Moreover, a single product recall can cost businesses $10 million and severely damage brand reputation.
Consumer trust is also eroding due to a need for more transparency. In an age where information is at our fingertips, more than 75% of consumers prefer brands that offer comprehensive product information. The main challenges in this regard come from inadequate communication and lack of traceability, frequently upheld by conventional paper-based tracking systems.
The Power of Blockchain and IoT
In fact, there is no single solution to address the issues confronting the food industry. However, the powerful combination of blockchain and IoT technology has the potential to address the underlying issues. To comprehend how these technologies can collaborate, it’s important to understand the strengths and constraints of each.
IoT: Harvesting Real-Time Data
Many individuals are already utilizing IoT products such as smart thermometers, speakers, and TVs, taking advantage of their ability to automatically collect real-time data. These devices rely on a range of sensors, including drones, smart thermometers, radio-frequency identification (RFID), and GPS, which help mitigate human errors throughout the supply chain. This seamless data collection offers the promise of reducing potential errors and minimizing vulnerabilities in the supply chain.
However, it’s important to note that IoT technology, on its own, cannot entirely resolve the transparency and communication challenges that persist in food supply chains. To address these issues effectively, blockchain technology enters the scene. Blockchain’s integration provides a robust solution, enhancing transparency and enabling secure communication within supply chains, thereby complementing the data-gathering capabilities of IoT devices.
Blockchain: Ensuring Immutability
Blockchain technology, known for Bitcoin and Ethereum, has applications far beyond cryptocurrencies. Its key strength lies in creating an immutable ledger, which means once data is recorded, it cannot be altered or tampered with. This feature makes blockchain ideal for storing and displaying data that requires both transparency and immutability. Implementing blockchain also compels businesses to clean up and systematize their data, improving processes and data accuracy.
For instance, when purchasing organic cereal, blockchain allows you to trace every step of its production. This traceability eliminates trust issues in the supply chain, providing transparency and integrity, ultimately ensuring the product matches its claims
IoT and Blockchain: A Potential Game Changer for the Food Industry
These technologies could potentially save the food industry over $31 billion in the next five years, primarily through the prevention of food fraud. Enhanced sensors can reduce food wastage, and more efficient recalls lead to cost savings. Although agricultural blockchain/ IoT technology is in its early stage, it offers promising ways to make an impact.
Enhancing Crop Efficiency
To boost crop efficiency, the first step involves employing IoT smart devices equipped with crop sensors to monitor temperature, pH, light, humidity, and soil moisture on a specific farm. Drones play a vital role by capturing real-data on crop health and alerting farmers to potential field issues.
This approach empowers farmers to make informed, real-time decisions. However, when integrated with blockchain technology, it transforms the landscape. Once structured, the data can be seamlessly integrated into a blockchain system and further refined with machine learning.
These AI-generated insights can be securely stored on the blockchain, enabling various stakeholders to access valuable information without compromising individual farmers' privacy.
Enhancing Supply Chain Transparency
A major challenge is making supply chains, particularly in the food industry, more transparent, allowing consumers to make informed choices. IoT technology offers a solution by using sensors to track the origins of animals and crops, checking for compliance with organic and cruelty-free standards. IoT-enabled vehicles transport these products for processing, recording temperature and handling data on a blockchain throughout the entire journey.
This not only helps retailers manage product arrivals but, more importantly, provides consumers with transparency. With a simple QR code scan, consumers can access a product's entire life cycle before making a purchase, making it easier to make well-informed decisions.
Other use
IoT and blockchain technology offer remarkable versatility. They can be applied by farmers to share weather data and address climate change impacts, while environmental advocates can use them to ensure food quality standards are met. The primary benefit lies in cost reduction and food quality enhancement. Importantly, these applications are not just theoretical; many companies are actively implementing blockchain technology in practical, real-world scenarios.
Current Applications of Blockchain and IoT
Several projects worldwide are already making strides in the application of blockchain and IoT technologies to the food industry:
Tracking Sustainable Foods with WWF-Australia's OpenSC Project
WWF-Australia and BCG Digital Ventures have launched the OpenSC project, employing blockchain and IoT tech to boost food logistics transparency. For example, in the fishing industry, IoT devices track a fish's journey from catch to store shelves, allowing customers to verify its sustainability by scanning a QR code on the product.
OpenSC is also collaborating with Nestlé to trace milk from New Zealand farms to Middle East factories, promoting greater transparency. With $4 million in funding secured in 2019, the project holds promise as a proof-of-concept for enhancing transparency in the agricultural sector.
Boombloc and the Malaysian Palm Oil Council: Restoring Trust in Palm Oil
In recent years, palm oil has faced heightened scrutiny due to large-scale illegal operations that have caused significant environmental harm. Recognizing the importance of palm oil as a vital income source for Malaysian farmers, the Malaysian Palm Oil Council (MPOC) has teamed up with Boombloc to address these concerns and rebuild the sector's credibility.
This initiative utilizes smartphones to upload data about individual palm oil trees to a central database, facilitating the creation of a comprehensive ledger. This ledger enables users to track the entire lifecycle of each tree and verify the origin of any palm oil they consider purchasing. The MPOC aims to use this system to alleviate concerns surrounding the environmental impact of illicit palm oil operations.
IBM Food Trust
The IBM Food Trust, powered by the Hyperledger Fabric blockchain, is the leading agricultural blockchain project. It's open source and designed with business users in mind. This initiative connects various participants across the food supply chain through a secure, shared data ledger, using user-friendly tools for implementation.
For instance, Nestlé and Carrefour use this platform to trace their infant milk products from source to market, enhancing transparency. The Sustainable Shrimp Partnership (SSP) also collaborates with IBM Food Trust to offer consumers access to product data, ensuring products meet their claimed standards and promoting transparency.
Mr L.Chris at IBM as one of the early blockchain pioneers to implement SE Asia Mango Supply Chain on Hyperledger.
MCB Ventures DAO's AgFinTech Ecosystem
MCB Ventures DAO is at the forefront of this transformation, offering a solution that combines the power of blockchain and IoT to create a more transparent, efficient, and secure food supply chain. Our cutting-edge AgFinTech ecosystem leverages blockchain and crypto-economic mechanisms to empower individuals worldwide in creating, managing, and overseeing physical infrastructure networks.
The seasoned team at MCB isn't solely comprised of technologists, but also award-winning agriculturists who are dedicated stewards of the Earth, bringing a blend of expertise that's critical for our AgFinTech ecosystem.
Through our DePINs framework, we integrate IoTs and Next-Gen RFIDs into the agriculture and food supply chain. This enables decentralized, robust, and smooth operations, eliminating the need for central trust or permissions in serving multi-trillion-dollar real-world economies. Together, we can transform the future of food production and distribution, benefiting consumers, businesses, and the planet. Join us in shaping this exciting new era in AgFinTech.