A leading company in the door-to-door sale and distribution of frozen foods to consumers recently announced plans to implement a multinational professional services firm's blockchain solution. The solution will reportedly allow the company's customers to use their smartphones to scan a QR code on the packaging and review the products' details for each step of the supply chain from harvest to point of sale. The company intends to pilot the solution with fillets of Northern cod and artichoke heart wedges. Separately, one of the largest food companies in the world also recently announced plans to implement a blockchain solution that would allow consumers to ascertain and certify sourcing facts and product quality. A blockchain solution for the honey supply chain is also reportedly in the works. An American multinational computer technology firm announced plans to partner with the World Bee Project to launch a "BeeMark" label that will designate honey that comes from verifiable organic and sustainable sources. The partnership also will implement data science and install monitoring systems inside beehives to monitor environmental factors and track bee behavior to research population decline. According to a study published this week, the global blockchain supply chain market is expected to reach over $9 billion by 2025.

Two major ocean carriers have announced plans to join the blockchain-enabled digital shipping platform TradeLens. With these additions, the scope of the platform reportedly extends to more than half of the world's ocean container cargo and supports five of the world's six largest carriers. According to reports, TradeLens replaces peer-to-peer paper-based exchanges with a platform that enables participants to digitally connect, share information and collaborate across the shipping supply chain ecosystem. Also last week, a major Dutch bank, the Port of Rotterdam and a South Korean-based global technology firm successfully completed the first paperless and fully door-to-door tracked shipments with the blockchain-based DELIVER platform. According to the press release, DELIVER aims to integrate container tracking and the documentation of financial transactions through a secure and paperless logistics process.

A multinational professional services firm recently announced plans to extend its current Health Outcomes Assessment platform with a U.K.-based digital health company and an Amsterdam-based software security company. The platform reportedly provides a blockchain solution for outcomes-based contracting, an emerging concept that purportedly leads to fairer reimbursement and access to novel treatments for patients. Also in recent news, one of the largest public research institutions in the U.S. announced plans to use blockchain for academic record data sharing. The solution seeks to solve the pain point of interoperability of academic records across institutions and would allow participating institutions to securely exchange and verify academic credentials.

To read more about the topics covered in this week's post, see the following:

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.