VeChain ToolChain, a blockchain-based traceability software, is empowering pork consumers in China’s technological hub, Shenzhen, with end-to-end traceability, announced VeChain on June 5.
Besides being home to the rich and affluent, the Chinese city of Shenzhen is also known for its love for emerging technology, especially blockchain. Today, consumers from this city are becoming increasingly aware of the food they consume, practically shunning the pre-packaged goods containing general product information.
China’s association with food scandals
China has a long history of food adulteration and contamination. The Chinese milk scandal that rocked the food industry in 2008 resulted in the hospitalization of close to 54,000 Chinese babies. In 2011, hundreds of pork consumers were sickened after consuming steroids-induced pork meat.
From confiscating sale of decades-old stale meat in 2015, with an estimated value of $480 million to the being the very breeding ground of the COVID-19 outbreak, food-related scandals have tainted China’s image for the longest time. And VeChain ToolChain is on a mission to address that.
VeChain ToolChain for farm to fork traceability
On June 2, Shenzhen Yuhongtai Foods announced the integration of the VeChain ToolChain platform, starting with premium pork meat seller Meijiada Fresh Foods. This store chain, specializing in the trading of fresh groceries, will empower 12.53 million consumers in Shenzhen with an ability to accurately track the origins of their products.
Meijiada’s pork meat is made from hogs, which are fed a variety of products like soy, corn, and hawthorn. To ensure that the standard of quality doesn’t drop, Meijiada boasts same-day sale of its meat products.
However, catering to the needs of the gadget-savvy and highly conscious customers of Shenzhen isn’t easy. Lack of product data and transparency in the food supply chain adversely affects its brand name, thus making it challenging to meet high-end needs.
By deploying the VeChain ToolChain, Meijiada Fresh Foods consumers can use their smartphones to scan a QR code featuring on the pork products that take them to an information page specific to that product. Consumers can find information on pork’s origin and how it was raised, fed, and stored before being transported to the store.
Blockchain for supply chain and data management
Meanwhile, making a strong case for blockchain’s applicability in supply chain distribution and data management, VeChain joined forces with pharma company Bayer China last month to enhance clinical drug traceability.
Around the same time, it also partnered with I-Dante to co-design a healthcare data management system, backed by blockchain technology, in Cyprus hospitals for serving coronavirus-related needs.
