Blockchain: case studies in food supply chain visibility

• Published in: Supply chain management Vol. 25; no. 5; pp. 601 - 614
• Main Authors: Rogerson, Michael, Parry, Glenn C
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Bradford Emerald Publishing Limited 16.06.2020; Emerald Group Publishing Limited
• Subjects: Baby foods; Blockchain; Case studies; Collaboration; Counterfeit; Cryptography; Digital currencies; Empirical analysis; Enterprise resource planning; Food contamination & poisoning; Food processing industry; Food supply; Fraud; Guards; Human error; Logistics; Process controls; Qualitative analysis; Radio frequency identification; Supply chain management; Supply chains; Technology; Technology adoption; Trustworthiness; Supply chain vulnerability; Information transparency; Supply-chain management; Supply chain visibility; Supply chains; Food security; Blockchain; Research4 good; Trust; Blockchain for good; Supply risk
• ISSN: 1359-8546; 1758-6852
• DOI: 10.1108/SCM-08-2019-0300

Purpose This paper aims to investigate how blockchain has moved beyond cryptocurrencies and is being deployed to enhance visibility and trust in supply chains, their limitations and potential impact. Design/methodology/approach Qualitative analysis are undertaken via case studies drawn from food companies using semi-structured interviews. Findings Blockchain is demonstrated as an enabler of visibility in supply chains. Applications at scale are most likely for products where the end consumer is prepared to pay the premium currently required to fund the technology, e.g. baby food. Challenges remain in four areas: trust of the technology, human error and fraud at the boundaries, governance, consumer data access and willingness to pay. Research limitations/implications The paper shows that blockchain can be utilised as part of a system generating visibility and trust in supply chains. Research directs academic attention to issues that remain to be addressed. The challenges pertaining to the technology itself we believe to be generalisable; those specific to the food industry may not hold elsewhere. Practical implications From live case studies, we provide empirical evidence that blockchain provides visibility of exchanges and reliable data in fully digitised supply chains. This provides provenance and guards against counterfeit goods. However, firms will need to work to gain consumer buy-in for the technology following repeated past claims of trustworthiness. Originality/value This paper provides primary evidence from blockchain use cases “in the wild”. The exploratory case studies examine application of blockchain for supply chain visibility.