Cannabis Track and Trace Solutions on The Blockchain

Verity One USA, Inc., a Wyoming based systems integration company, has released a production-ready global supply chain management solution for the legal cannabis industry.

Verity is currently negotiating with substantial marijuana quality assurance labs, distributors, and regulators about initiating its Cannabis supply chain solution, with a focus on compliance with industry-specific requirements.

Verity cites interoperability with legacy systems, onboarding of new participants, as well as defective product recall capabilities as among the planned capabilities of the new blockchain platform. Verity will be able to track and trace Cannabis using unique digital signatures on the blockchain. This provides consumers and distributors with authenticated, immutable data on place of origin, quality assurance, and regulatory compliance for their Cannabis.

Adam Reiser CEO of Verity, systems integration expert, and blockchain pioneer said:

“ The emerging Cannabis industry demands a proven track and trace product management solution with a combination of legacy, blockchain, and artificial intelligence systems. The first visible use case of blockchain was Bitcoin (BTC), but the ideal application of blockchain is supply chain management for categories like Cannabis, prescription drugs, food safety and country of origin labeling.”

Blockchain technology has already been actively deployed in agriculture and food supply chains by industry giants like Walmart and IBM, but the Cannabis industry has remained untouched. For instance, IBM launched its blockchain-based food tracking network “Food Trust” to connect independent parties within the food industry earlier this month. During the August 2017 trial period, IBM partnered with companies of various sizes like Nestle, Dole Food Co., Driscoll’s Inc., Golden State Foods, Kroger, McCormick, Tyson Foods, and Walmart.

Furthermore, U.S. retail titan Walmart has given all its vegetable suppliers a 2019 deadline to join the Food Trust blockchain platform developed by IBM. The blockchain, in the case of agriculture and food, is meant to provide traceability, particularly in cases of disease outbreaks and Verity believes this technology is a perfect fit for the emerging Cannabis industry.

 

 

Five Trends That Will Shape The Supply Chain In 2017

With the holiday parties and New Year’s celebrations in the rear-view mirror, it’s time to take a look ahead at what’s in store for supply chain in 2017. And while we don’t have a crystal ball to predict the future, there are some trends that will undoubtedly and irrevocably shift the supply chain in the year ahead.

Reshoring Data Reveals Progress, Problems for Reclaiming Jobs

The Reshoring Initiative, a not-for-profit organization that helps manufacturers recognize the profit potential for adopting local sourcing and production, issued its 2015 Reshoring Report, documenting progress that the U.S. manufacturing sector has made over the past decade in offsetting the job losses and capital investment, and recognized that “rapid job loss” has been curtailed, while conceding that “huge challenges to bringing back the 3-4 million manufacturing jobs previously lost to offshore.”

The report includes data on reshoring of formerly offshore jobs and foreign direct investment (FDI) by companies establishing new domestic manufacturing for 2007-2015. Both factors are keyed to manufacturers’ determination to produce goods in the market where they are intended to be distributed, known as ‘localization.’

The complete— Reshoring Initiative Data Report: Reshoring and FDI Continue Strong in 2015 — is available online.

For 2015, the combination of reshoring and FDI continued to be strong, adding 67,000 domestic manufacturing jobs. Since February 2010 (a low point for U.S. manufacturing employment), more than 249,000 manufacturing since the manufacturing employment low of February 2010, the group indicated.

However, the overall trend fell 6% from 2014 due to a strong U.S. dollar; low oil prices and shipping rates; and weaker economies in competitor manufacturing countries.

Among the reasons for reshoring and FDI documented for 2015 are government incentives, ecosystems/localization, proximity to customers, and a skilled workforce. Offshore problems that companies cited included lower quality, supply interruption, high freight costs, and delivery.

Regionally, the reshoring trend remained strongest in the Southeast and Texas, though in 2015 the West overtook the Midwest for second place among regions gaining the most jobs from offshore.

Despite the downturn, 2015 was the second consecutive year that manufacturing jobs returning to the U.S. remains equal to or slightly higher than the number of jobs leaving. By comparison, for 2000-2007, the U.S. market lost about 220,000 manufacturing jobs annually due to offshoring.

“We publish this data annually to show companies that sourcing domestically is an increasing trend in the United States,” stated Reshoring Initiative founder and president Harry Moser. “With 3 to 4 million manufacturing jobs still offshore, as measured by our $500 billion/year trade deficit, we see potential for even more growth, and we hope this data will motivate more companies to reevaluate their sourcing and siting decisions.”

Moser, the former president of machine tool builder GF AgieCharmilles, established the Reshoring Initiative to help manufacturers recognize the profit potential of embracing local sourcing and production. Among the resources it offers companies to make supply chain sourcing decisions is its Total Cost of Ownership Estimator®, a calculating tool to help account for and understand relevant offshoring costs (e.g., inventory carrying costs, shipping expenses, intellectual property risks, etc.)

SOURCE: American Machinist

Consumers Want Transparency: Are You Ready to Respond?

Retailers will discuss transparency-related challenges and opportunities at the 2016 Innovation & Collaboration Summit.

Food Manufacturers Lack Supply Chain Visibility, Risk Reputational Damage

The majority of large food manufacturers lack visibility into their supply chains, putting them at risk for violating regulations and damaging their reputations, according to a recent survey commissioned by Achilles. 

King Arthur Wants To Tell You Where Its Flour Comes From

More and more, people want their food providers to be transparent. They want to know exactly where the ingredient they’re eating and cooking with are coming from. Which is why King Arthur Flour recently launched Identity-Preserved White Whole Wheat Flour.

RIP Manufacturing Renaissance (and Reshoring) Claims

Because manufacturers (and others) don’t always do what they say, surveys of their intentions on hiring and investment and the like should always be taken with a big boulder of salt – the more so since the questions are often asked and the answers given in a political and policy context.

The Case for Reshoring: Bring Quality Manufacturing Jobs to USA

Good news for U.S. manufacturers: stateside production and employment opportunities are on the rise.

Costco Faces Lawsuit over Sale of Prawns Allegedly Farmed by Slave Labor

Costco Wholesale Corp. customer sued the retailer on allegations that it knowingly sold frozen prawns that were the product of slave labor.

Success Of Nation’s Manufacturing Depends On U.S. Supply Chain

In a thought-provoking post on the official blog for the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP), author Mark Schmidt talks about the importance of U.S. supply chains on the nation’s global competitiveness in the manufacturing sector.