The Role of Blockchain Technology in Reducing Food Waste

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INTRODUCTION

The waste of food is one of the biggest problems in the world today, and food loss by this author equals to one-third of almost all food that is produced in one year. This problem not only leads to further environmental pollution as a result of more methane, but also, it impacts food security since these resources could feed billions of people. Conventional supply chains are rife with inefficiencies, and lack useful information to be able to trace food from farm to fork facilitating the wastage and spoilage of food.

This situation presents a considerable opportunity for the application of blockchain technology, because of its capacity to contain a secure, transparent and distributed record of food products at every point of the supply chain. Food safety is enhanced, vengeance has been eliminated, and all the parties are operating in real time due to the verifiability of transactions conducted through the use of a blockchain network. This type of visibility can be utilized to evaluate the state of food and its storage, handle their contamination and establish a link to the possible causes of contamination and ameliorate their storage.

Various nations and sectors are already considering various applications of blockchain to transform food systems. As is evident, it would be unreasonable to make some findings without proper application of blockchain technology as it, some with the right usages educate people about technology to enhance food waste minimization and fight globalization supply chain inefficiencies.

• INCREASING TRANSPARENCY IN THE SUPPLY CHAIN:

Blockchain primarily reduces food waste by increasing transparency in the food supply chain. The traditional supply chains comprise several intermediaries right from farmers and processors to distributors and retailers. But inefficiencies in the product tracking along with spoilage and mismanagement cause a lot of this produce to get wasted.

Blockchain technology can potentially enable complete transparency in the journey of a food product from its source to its ultimate consumer. Every transaction or movement is recorded on a distributed ledger, creating an immutable trail that can be accessed in real time. This not only allows monitoring of food quality in real time but also ensures that products are transported and stored under correct conditions. If, for instance, a particular food grade is mishandled or stored under wrong conditions, it would get flagged and removed from the supply chain before it reaches the consumer.

Blockchain could also play a significant role in reducing instances of food fraud wherein low-quality products or expired items are passed off as being high quality and kosher. By ensuring equal access to verified information for every player in the journey of a product through blockchain, this issue can be significantly abated.

INVENTORY AND WASTE MANAGEMENT

Efficient inventory management can mitigate food waste, particularly in retail and distribution settings where perishable products are involved. Inadequate inventory management often leads to overstocking, which will translate into spoilage when goods remain unsold or unconsumed for too long. Blockchain technology can offer a solution by enabling real-time information on stock levels and shelf life.

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Through blockchain, retailers can get the better view of expiry dates and stock levels that in turn help them to adjust purchase decisions in advance and avoid overstocking. Smart contracts can manage same operations as well, by helping to place restocking orders when items are low or below predefined thresholds /or when the products are near to its expiry date, hence reducing the possibility for wastage through redundancy.

As well Blockchain enhance the functional collaboration between retailers and other food banks/charities: In condition when some fatality of a product is known earlier, Blockchain enabled systems can send an alert out to organization nearby who could leverage on this information to rescue it rather waste it.

• STREAMLINING FOOD TRACEABILITY AND FOOD SAFETY:

Identifying how food safety can also waste a lot is very important. Food may go waste if it becomes contaminated, and if that occurs, may call for food recalls of excessive amounts because of lack of a definitive source for the contamination. This has resulted to inefficiencies in the management of recalls since they have been timed and inefficient

Technology provides a solution to clearer vision of food traceability. Merely by looking at accounts within the blockchain, stakeholders can identify which products should be detained and where they were processed. Only those items that have been judged unsafe are withdrawn from the market, and other safe products are not forbidden from sale. Blurring market boundaries consequently reduces the volume of food blasted out due to safety issues.

In addition, the use of blockchain technology will precisely improve risk management capabilities with regard to food safety. Stakeholders will also prevent risk caused by adorned conditions before the food gets perished.

• SUPPORTING SUSTAINABILITY AND REDUCING ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

Blockchain also adds on to the existing sustainability trends by reducing environmental impact through reducing food wastes. Food wastage is a huge contributor of greenhouse gases, and when food ends up in landfill, it decomposes into methane which is far more potent than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas. As blockchain technology helps prevent overproduction and better inventory control through improved supply chain visibility, overall food production for the world will likely decrease and therefore contributing to lesser unnecessary environmental footprint.

In addition, blockchain can also encourage sustainable farming practices. Blockchain technology gives farmers real-time information on what consumer demand is like so that they can produce what is needed, preventing overproduction. This not only reduces food waste, but it also saves the water, energy and fertilizers that are used to grow that food. Using blockchain, farmers can also access specific information on market trends themselves to make better decisions in relation with their own sustainability goals.

CONCLUSION

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The potential for blockchain to reduce food waste is immense. Blockchain can increase supply chain visibility and efficiency, improve traceability, and encourage sustainability.

Food products can be tracked with a secure and immutable system through blockchain technology, which mitigates many of the problems causing food waste in the first place. With more sectors adopting blockchain, its impact on food production and consumption will only rise.

The features that allow for improved accountability, real-time inventory management, and assurance of product safety all prove useful as we combat global food waste and work to build a more sustainable future for everyone.