Nestlé will pilot a blockchain platform to track food products back to the farm for full supply chain transparency.
The food and beverage company has collaborated with Australian and US blockchain platform OpenSC to provide access to verified sustainability and supply chain data.
Benjamin Ware, global head of responsible sourcing at Nestlé, said: “This open blockchain technology will allow anyone, anywhere in the world to assess our responsible sourcing facts and figures.”
The pilot will involve milk sourced from New Zealand farms and sent to Nestlé factories and warehouses in the Middle East. It will also test palm oil sourced from the Americas. These products will show the scalability of the platform, according to Nestlé.
Magdi Batato, executive vice president and head of operations at Nestlé, said: “We want our consumers to make an informed decision on their choice of products and choose products produced responsibly.”
This is part of Nestlé’s plans for the “full disclosure of supply chains” announced in February, said Ware. It has been testing blockchain technology since 2017, and worked with Carrefour on the IBM Food Trust platform in April.
Meanwhile, Nestlé launched a recyclable confectionery wrapper for the YES! snack bar range that can biodegrade within six months in the sea. The wrapper was developed using sustainable coated paper and packaging machinery and processes were adapted to handle it. The company aims to meet targets for recycleable or reusable packaging by 2025.
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