Carrefour joins IBM Food Trust blockchain network

French multinational retailer Carrefour has made efforts to boost traceability and efficiency of its operations through joining IBM’s blockchain-based Cloud network, IBM Food Trust.

With 12,000 stores in 22 countries, the retailer plans to use this food chain network to strengthen the trust that customers have in Carrefour-branded products. By 2022, Carrefour intends to expand the solution to all its brands worldwide.

Carrefour general secretary Laurent Vallée said: “Being a founding member of the IBM Food Trust platform is a great opportunity for Carrefour to accelerate and widen the integration of blockchain technology to our products in order to provide our clients with safe and undoubted traceability.

“This is a decisive step in the roll-out of ‘Act for Food’, our global programme of concrete initiatives in favour of the food transition.”

IBM Food Trust is a blockchain-based Cloud network that provides data from across the food supply chain to providers, growers, suppliers and retailers to offer traceability and transparency.

This network is now available following a testing period of 18 months, when millions of food products were tracked by retailers and suppliers.

According to IBM, with the use of blockchain for trusted transactions, food products can be quickly traced back to its source in as little as a few seconds rather than waiting for days or weeks.

IBM clients, platforms and blockchain senior vice-president Bridget van Kralingen said: “The currency of trust today is transparency, and achieving it in the area of food safety happens when responsibility is shared.

“That collaborative approach is how the members of IBM Food Trust have shown blockchain can strengthen transparency and drive meaningful enhancements to food traceability. Ultimately that provides business benefits for participants and a better and safer product for consumers.”

Besides Carrefour, firms that are part of IBM Food Trust include Topco Associates, Wakefern, BeefChain, Dennick Fruit Source, Scoular, and Smithfield.