Multinational metal and oil mining giant BHP has successfully tested blockchain in a conjoint experiment with Japanese shipping company NYK, shipping news magazine Dry Bulk reports Tuesday, Feb. 5. Sustainable biofuel company GoodFuels provided its product for the experiment, while BLOC — a developer of blockchain applications for the maritime industry — built the decentralized ecosystem to trace it. During the trial, the GoodFuels biofuel was delivered to the BHP-chartered and NYK-owned bulk carrier Frontier Sky, while carbon dioxide (CO2) savings were verified via a blockchain fuels assurance platform. As explained by Dry Bulk, the sustainable biofuel used in the …

The Food and Drug Administration of the Chinese Chongqing Yuzhong District is going to apply blockchain technology to its operations, the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party, The People’s Daily, reports on Jan. 31. Blockchain will purportedly be applied by the agency to strengthen the supervision of food and drug quality assurance with better traceability of the product life cycle and anti-counterfeiting measures. Deng Ke, the CEO of PrimeNumber Chain Technology Chengdu Co., Ltd — the company that developed the blockchain which will be used by the system — said that the system will not only help improve the …

One of largest Japanese trading companies has officially announced the start of a proof-of-concept (PoC) aimed to develop a blockchain traceability system, according to a press release published on Feb. 1. Itochu Corporation, a general trading company and one of the five largest companies in Japan, is developing a blockchain traceability system that will allow buyers and sellers to record the date, time, location and other transaction details on blockchain through a smartphone app. The PoC will use the Indonesian-based firm Pt. Aneka Bumi Pratama’s natural rubber supply chain, a company that processes and produces crumb rubber and is fully …

Merck, the world’s oldest operating pharmaceutical firm, has won a blockchain patent from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), Cointelegraph auf Deutsch reported Jan. 30 The German multinational has developed a system that uses a combination of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and blockchain tech to establish the authenticity of unique physical objects. As Merck reports in a press release Jan. 30: “The new technology uses machine learning to link physical objects to a blockchain through their own unique identifiers or ‘fingerprints‘.” According the firm, the new patent describes a technology that can identify and record any unique feature of …

Banks in India are collaborating on a new blockchain platform to remove financing hurdles for micro, small and medium size businesses (MSMEs), local daily news outlet Economic Times reported Jan. 28. A total of eleven banks — including second-biggest lender Kotak Mahindra Bank, State Bank of India and ICICI Bank — are already meeting to discuss the implementation of a platform that will make it easier for businesses with smaller turnover to raise funds transparently. The move is being organized under a consortium dubbed the “Blockchain Infrastructure Company.” “Credit penetration is low for the [MSME] sector where the ticket size …

Swiss-headquartered food retail giant Nestle S.A. says that the blockchain-based IBM Food Trust initiative — which counts major global retailers such as Walmart and Unilever as members— is gearing up to onboard new suppliers and retailers this year. Benjamin Dubois, digital transformation manager of global supply chain at Nestle, spoke of the development in an interview with Swiss regional bilingual daily newspaper 24 heures on Jan. 28. As reported, the IBM Food Trust blockchain has been underway since fall 2016, with the first product trials spearheaded by Walmart in China in December 2016. Nestle, for its part, has been engaged …

The United Kingdom’s national standards body, the British Standards Institution (BSI), has partnered with blockchain company OriginTrail to increase supply chain transparency. The partnership was reported in a Jan. 24 press release. BSI, which has operated since 1901 and had a reported revenue in 2017 of 473 million GBP (about $616 million), says it wants to use the company’s blockchain-based protocol to enhance the options businesses have to prove their supply chains are compliant with various regulations. The partnership is one of several that OriginTrail has cemented over the past year since completing its initial coin offering (ICO) last January. …

JP Morgan-backed digital services firm Smartrac has partnered with SUKU Ecosystem, a blockchain startup headed by former Deloitte exec Eric Piscini, according to a tweet on Tuesday, Jan. 22. SUKU, which is parented by blockchain firm Citizens Reserve, will provide its platform to integrate with Smartrac’s supply chain. Smartrac is a radio-frequency identification (RFID) inlay manufacturer based in the Netherlands. Citizens Reserve reportedly released the alpha version of SUKU last autumn. SUKU is a supply chain as a service platform based on blockchain technology. Piscini, CEO at Citizens Reserve, said that the new partnership aims to resolve major problems related …

The Port Authority of the Bay of Algeciras (APBA) has signed an agreement under which it will collaborate with IBM on its shipping platform Tradelens, Europa News reported on Jan. 21. Tradelens is a digital platform based on blockchain technology developed by both IBM and international shipping giant Maersk. Algeciras is one of the top 10 busiest ports in Europe, hosting over 70 million tons of cargo traffic annually. In 2017, the port had a container throughput of 4.3 million containers. According to an APBA note seen by Europa News, the platform will allow APBA to more securely and efficiently …

The investment arm of logistics giant UPS has made an undisclosed equity investment in United States enterprise blockchain company Inxeption, the firm confirmed in a press release Jan 16. Inxeption, which began operations in 2017, aims to use blockchain technology to improve various processes for businesses, including product design, manufacturing and supply chain management. Neither party has revealed the scope of the deal, which will reportedly see Inxeption and the UPS Strategic Enterprise Fund work in tandem in future to develop new features for Inxeption’s platform. “Business customers need secure platforms that protect their customer data and proprietary information, while …

United States enterprise supply chain developer Chronicled has raised $16 million in a Series A funding round, the company confirmed in a press release Jan. 15. Chronicled — which will use blockchain technology to power a platform helping clients secure and automate supply chains — saw its round led by Hong Kong venture capital firm Mandra Capital. Streamlined Ventures, The Perkins Fund, Frank Fiore and David Aho also participated in the funding round The company reports it is planning to launch its platform this year. “While many companies in the space are conducting ICOs — fueling speculation and hurting the …

World Wildlife Fund-Australia (WWF-Australia) has announced the launch of a supply chain tool that uses blockchain to allow businesses and consumers to track food items, according to a tweet today, Jan. 17. The platform, dubbed OpenSC, is the product of a partnership between WWF-Australia and BCG Digital Ventures (BCGDV) — the global corporate venture, investment and incubation arm of United States-based Boston Consulting Group. According to a post on the WWF site, the system allows both businesses to track products they produce, and consumers to view the origins of said products via a “unique blockchain code at the product’s point …