IBM completes Blockchain trial following a shipment of 28-tonne oranges

IBM has completed the trial of blockchain technology to track a shipment of mandarins from China to Singapore.

Announced today, 28 tons of mandarins, or 3,000 cartons containing about 108,000 fruits, were delivered before the Chinese New Year celebration on February 5 (mandarins are a symbol of prosperity, IBM explained). The main shipping document, the bill of lading, was registered on a blockchain.

This document serves as proof of ownership, receipt of goods and shipping contract, and is normally mailed to all parties involved in the shipment, including banks providing commercial financing. For the pilot project, IBM created an electronic bill of lading, or e-BL, which reduced and accelerated administrative processes "in one second only" because the flow of documents is automated, the company says – while the standard paper procedure five to seven days.

"Using the e-BL, we could see how the entire shipping process could be simplified and made more transparent with considerable savings," said Tay Khiam Back, president and chief from the direction of the fruit importer Hupco, in a press release.

Lower the costs

In addition to saving time with document processing, the test showed that an electronic system based on the blockchain can reduce operating costs such as the electricity used for the containers refrigerators pending collection at the port, storage costs and other expenses, said IBM. It also allowed for better information processing, by providing a traceable and tamper-proof record storage for the marine shipment sector, where document fraud accounts for 40% of all fraud.

"To date, the industry and the authorities have provided us with very positive feedback and we are excited about the possibility that our blockchain developments can transform and boost the efficiency and effectiveness of the blockchain. Innovation, "said Lisa Teo, Executive Director of Pacific International Lines, said in the press release.

Earlier this month, IBM announced another supply chain pilot project fueled by the blockchain, which would track the cobalt trip mined in the Democratic Republic of Congo, through a Chinese refinery and a refinery plant. Korean batteries to a factory of Ford Motors in the United States.

More significantly, the IBM Food Trust blockchain was commissioned last year, at which Walmart participated.

Image of mandarin oranges via Shutterstock.