Major tech firm IBM has partnered with MineHub Technologies to deliver a blockchain solution that will improve supply chain management in the mining and metals industry. IBM announced the initiative in a press release published Jan. 16. MineHub is a company that uses technologies including blockchain to develop cost-saving applications for the metals and mining industry. The newly announced mining supply chain platform will be built on the cloud-based IBM Blockchain Platform powered by the Linux Foundation's Hyperledger Fabric. The solution targets the inefficiencies of the global mining and metal market — which is estimated at $1.8 trillion. These include …

Global technology giant IBM will use its blockchain platform to monitor and trace supplies of cobalt from the Democratic Republic of Congo, the company confirmed in a press release on Jan. 15. IBM, which has already used the in-house IBM Blockchain platform built on the Hyperledger Fabric in multiple use case environments, will now target the rapidly expanding supplies of cobalt needed for electric cars and consumer devices. The scheme will run in tandem with motor company Ford, South Korean cathode maker LG Chem and China’s Huayou Cobalt. RCS Global, a multinational responsible sourcing company, will also monitor the proceedings. …

Customs authorities in Saudi Arabia have concluded a pilot scheme linking its cross-border trade platform FASAH with IBM and Maersk’s TradeLens blockchain platform. A press release from Dec. 26 reported the pilot’s conclusion. TradeLens, which IBM and Maersk created in August last year, is intended to be a basis for digital supply chains and launched with almost 100 entities willing to take part in the pilot. For Saudi Arabia, the move forms part of authorities’ desire to expand the country’s economy via the Vision 2030 initiative. “The pilot comes in line with our strategy that aims to facilitate trade and …

Australia’s National Transport Insurance (NTI) has announced it will trial a blockchain system to improve supply chain integrity for beef exports abroad. The trial was reported by local transport industry magazine Fully Loaded ATN on Dec. 10. NTI will reportedly be partnering with BeefLedger, an Australian “integrated provenance, blockchain security and payments platform,” which combines blockchain with Internet of Things (IoT) technology to bolster product credentials across the supply chain. NTI and Beefledger’s pilot will use the system to track the provenance and production of Australian beef exports to Shanghai, from their rearing on South Australia’s Limestone Coast to a …

The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has successfully collaborated with IBM to pilot a blockchain supply chain system, according to an ADNOC press release published on Dec. 9. The release notes that ADNOC — a state-owned oil company in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) — is reportedly among the world’s leading energy and petrochemical groups, with a daily output of about 3 million barrels of oil and 10.5 cubic feet of natural gas. The pilot project has “provided a single platform that tracks the quantities and financial values of each bilateral transaction” between the involved companies automating the accounting, …

The graduate school for the U.S. Air Force has developed a educational tool on blockchain for supply chain management, U.S. business journal Modern Materials Handling (MMH) reported Dec. 3. The move comes in the form of a live application, together with a set of tutorial videos to educate defense professionals, released by the U.S. Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT). The report proposes that “blockchain will revolutionize [...] the digital infrastructure for future supply chains,” which it suggests, in particular, can translate into “better visibility” for the military’s “extremely complex logistics network.” AFIT states that blockchain’s “potential opportunities” can be …

Medici Ventures, the blockchain venture arm of Overstock.com Inc., has purchased $2.5 million in equity in agricultural blockchain project GrainChain, according to a press release shared with Cointelegraph Dec. 4. Founded in 2003, GrainChain has developed a blockchain-powered system that enables supply chain parties to track the distribution process of harvests. GrainChain’s blockchain-based financial settlement system allows producers, buyers and sellers to create smart contracts in order to secure funds throughout the grain transaction process. The firm states that their system provides a platform, by which small- and medium-scale farmers can conduct business outside of their immediate geographic area and …

A Swiss food manufacturer has become the “first” in Europe to use the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain to track fish products, a press release confirmed Nov. 28. Gustav Gerig AG, which has operated since 1923, partnered with global tuna marketing company Pacifical c.v. to allow clients to certify the origin of its tuna range using blockchain technology. Tins in the range will soon sport a QR code that consumers can scan in order to find out information such as the production date, type of tuna, and even the boat used to catch it. The blockchain implementation is being provided by Thailand-based …

Retail giant Carrefour, headquartered in France and operating in more than 30 countries, is deploying a blockchain food tracking platform based on Hyperledger in its Spanish network, a press release states Tuesday, Nov. 20. The food tracking solution, initially developed by U.S. tech corporation IBM, will be used to track free-range chickens branded as “Calidad y Origen” (“Quality and Origin”) that were raised in the northern region of Galicia without antibiotic treatment. Each package in the Spanish network will be marked by a QR code providing detailed info on the chicken’s date of birth, type of nutrition, packing date, and …

U.S. fast-casual salad chain Sweetgreen has announced a second funding round to raise $200 million, mentioning blockchain among its key development areas, according to a press release published Tuesday, Nov. 13. Throughout the first round, closed late October, the company managed to raise $200 million, becoming valued at over $1 billion. During the second round led by major asset management company Fidelity Investments, the salad chain aims to raise an equal amount. The сapital raised, in particular, will enable Sweetgreen to focus on technology and supply chain development, the release states, with blockchain mentioned as the “most viable solution available” …

More than a third of German logistics managers believe that blockchain technology has the potential to significantly improve cooperation in supply chains, according to a Hermes survey published Nov. 12. The survey polled participants on which technologies they believed were important for improving cooperation within the supply chain. 35 percent of respondents recognized the importance of blockchain, while 33 percent said that big data is important. Participants also noted the importance of Cyber-Physical Systems (56 percent) , Enterprise Resource Planning systems (46 percent), and sensor monitoring and data acquisition systems (44 percent). In larger companies — specifically in companies with …

Swiss-based Transoil International and Solaris Commodities have conducted a blockchain pilot transaction of Black Sea wheat, S&P Global reports Nov. 12. Both companies are involved in the trading of international agricultural commodities like milling wheat, vegetable oil and flour. The two firms completed the pilot using the blockchain-based agri-commodities trading and financing platform of Swiss startup Cerealia. Transoil and Solaris completed a sale for a 25,000 metric ton shipment of 11.5 percent protein Black Sea wheat on a FOB-loading port basis from the Russian port city of Novorossiysk. This is reportedly the first blockchain-based trade deal of Black Sea wheat, …