Provenance uses blockchain to tackle illegal fishing and human rights violations

Rage Review : The social enterprise Provenance uses blockchain technology in supply chain management to track the entire process of fish from fishing to supermarket shelves, effectively solving the problems of illegal fishing and human rights violations. Blockchain technology for supply chain management is a well-known application case and a research object for many companies, because blockchain can make complex global supply chains transparent through the use of blockchain technology. Although blockchain can achieve transparency in record keeping and ensure the safety and sustainable development of the fishing industry, humane working conditions are still the responsibility of government departments and social organizations.

Translation: Nicole

It turns out that the applications of blockchain technology are endless, and any challenge seems to be able to be solved using the underlying technology of Bitcoin, blockchain. Provenance, a social enterprise, has demonstrated this by using blockchain technology in supply chain management, which can effectively solve the problems of illegal fishing and human rights violations.

Project Provenance Limited is a UK-based company that provides blockchain-based supply chain transparency and tracking services. Digital technology solutions are expected to provide ways to address widespread human rights violations, in addition to the prevalence of illegal fishing in the seafood industry.

The company says the blockchain-based solution can track fish from the point of capture to the supermarket shelf. The entire movement of the fish in the supply chain is recorded on the blockchain, and anyone with a smartphone and an internet connection can easily verify the information recorded on the blockchain. The Environmental Justice Foundation is very interested in Provenance's application.

Steve Trent

Steve Trent, executive director of the Environmental Justice Foundation, was quoted in an English publication:

“Creating a mechanism that allows for transparency from ‘net’ to ‘plate’ is critical to addressing illegal and unsustainable fishing practices and human rights violations that continue to plague the seafood sector.”

With Provenance’s technology, fishermen can record their catch by sending a simple SMS. This replaces the current practice of maintaining paper records, which are not always reliable. As the catch information flows through the supply chain, these records can also be transmitted through the blockchain. This creates a transparent and reliable verifiable trail, and when the fish finally reaches the end point, which may be a restaurant or supermarket, the consumer can scan the tag and verify the entire movement from the origin point of the product to the end point.

Jessi Baker

Many companies are testing the technology. Jessi Baker, founder of Provenance, is particularly interested in the fishing industry. She said,

“We want to support those who catch fish using sustainable methods while verifying claims on the chain and driving the fishing market forward. This pilot project shows that complex global supply chains can be made transparent using blockchain technology.”

Jessi wants to implement this solution globally so that border control and certification agencies can use it to ensure that there are no environmental or human rights violations.

Blockchain technology for supply chain management is a well-known use case and one that many companies are researching. While blockchain can make record keeping transparent and ensure the safety and sustainability of the fishing industry, humane working conditions remain the responsibility of governments and social organizations.