Traceability from farm to table

“Blockchain is a decentralized solution. It’s about creating this independent and auditable flow of data along our value chain – every actor has the responsibility to upload the data … We are responsible for our parts; we can convey that to the consumer and they can be assured of the genuineness of what they see.” 

-    Benjamin Dubois, Nestlé

Speaking in 2020 to TechHQ as sustainability lead for the world’s largest food manufacturer, Mr Dubois described Nestlé’s adoption of blockchain for storing and displaying production and sourcing data. He explained how this new technology – in tandem with the use of satellites tracking agricultural coordinates – was bringing greater transparency and trust to the industry by publicly disclosing key details of the manufacturing process; from raw ingredients to end product, farm to fork. 

Nestlé has been joined by other leading multinationals – including Walmart, Nike, Unilever and Starbucks – in embracing the use of blockchain, satellites and related innovations to shed more light on their products’ supply chains. Indeed, it is an approach that has become a new business standard in many parts of the world, aligned with the introduction of sustainability-driven international regulations that mandate increased scrutiny over modes of production.

Mr Dubois makes two points that are key to using this technology effectively: firstly, the assurance of ethical and sustainable sourcing is reliant on supply chain players conducting due diligence to verify how raw materials and products have been sourced, Secondly, transparency requires full disclosure of this data, not only to regulators but also to traders, consumers and every other kind of stakeholder.

These are two principles that underpin what is known as a traceability system — the deployment of innovative technology in the industrial and agricultural sectors to track and monitor the journey of raw materials and products from cultivation, production, processing, transportation, distribution and ultimately to consumption. Each step of the process is therefore recorded as traceable data, bringing an unprecedented level of accuracy and integrity while providing consumers with assurance of no items reaching their tables as products of environmentally harmful farming practices. 

When such a system is in place, a coffee drinker, for example, only needs to scan a QR code to establish where the beans used in their favourite brew were grown and how they were harvested. It is also possible to also check whether certification has been issued by sustainability-focussed non-profit organisations like Rainforest Alliance and Fairtrade.

For it to become an industry standard for transactions and consumption to be informed by reliable data about the sourcing and manufacturing process, the private sector needs to adopt the following three technological innovations to ensure the effectiveness of traceability systems in their supply chains:

1. Blockchain Technology

Blockchain is an immutable database system that allows transparent data recording which is accessible to all stakeholders. It can collect information from the point of origin, drilled down to the specific geographical coordinates of the farm, to ascertain whether the sourcing process involved deforestation, slashing and burning, or other environmentally harmful activities.

2. Satellite Technology

Satellite technology can track the location of products or raw materials in the production chain in real-time through GPS (Global Positioning System) and GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System). For example, it can specify whether crops were grown in areas affected by forest fires (burning scars) or protected mountainous regions.

3. AI and Machine Learning

Artificial intelligence is able to analyse data provided by traceability systems and, for example, help predict potential problems or learn from processes to improve the value chain. Machine Learning can help detect errors or anomalies in production or transportation processes that may have been overlooked by humans.
These three forms of technology enable data to be comprehensively and rapidly stored and monitored, thereby generating a clear audit trail. The author believes that good data should include both primary data (collected within the company) and secondary data (collected from partners) to ensure its completeness.
From experience, the author believes the following forms of agricultural produce have a particular impact on sustainability, making the adoption of traceability systems for their production essential:

1. Coffee – to ensure that the supply chain does not include plantations and estates involved in deforestation

2. Cocoa – to provide verification of the production process not employing child labour

3. Palm oil – to halt the encroachment of plantations into rainforest areas of high biodiversity

4. Animal feed corn – to minimise deforestation and environmental degradation

In Thailand and Myanmar, Charoen Pokphand Group (CP), through Charoen Pokphand Produce (CPP) and Bangkok Produce Merchandising (BKP), has adopted traceability systems for its purchasing and distribution of agricultural products, and is working closely with traders, farmers and environmental partners to ensure their effectiveness. It has put policies in place that sanction trade with farms revealed by satellite imagery and GPS technology as being located in forested areas, mountain regions, or where burn spots indicate the use of slash and burn practice.

Similarly, Charoen Pokphand Foods (CPF) has implemented blockchain technology to trace food products throughout the supply chain. Consumers can scan a QR code on an item’s packaging to access information such as where it was sourced and its greenhouse gas reduction ratio.

The value and importance of traceability systems is evident in the increased transparency that technology has brought to supply chains. The combined use of blockchain, satellite and AI technology has enabled food items to be tracked and traced from source to consumer with a level of precision and transparency that was unimaginable not long ago. This technology not only supports efforts to preserve the environment but has a crucial role to play in embedding sustainable practice into all industrial and agricultural activity, in line with economic, social, and environmental dimensions of the UNs’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030.

It is therefore world-changing technology that needs to be embraced throughout the private sector as a crucial component of our collective push towards a sustainable world.