Fijian blockchain startup provides solution to fishing industry

By NIGEL KAUA | NEWS

If you are aware of the issue of traceability and the ongoing battle to make the fishing industry sustainable and ethical, you would appreciate being able to live anywhere in the world and know that the fish you are able to consume was caught, transported and stored and finally bought by the retailer and served by the restaurant in which you sit all genuinely, legally and under proper processes which ensure sustainability in the industry.

One blockchain startup in Fiji is making this possible in partnership with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), a Fijian fishing and processing company Sea Quest (Fiji) Ltd and US blockchain company ConsenSys.

The project runs on a blockchain product by ConsenSys sub-company, Viant, which enables the traceability of fish caught by Sea Quest in Fiji waters and transported along the supply chain, “from bait to plate” as the project slogan suggests.

Each fish caught is tagged with a QR code that records the date and location of the catch, this process is repeated at every port in which the product lands, in bulk, on ice, sliced, diced and cooked. 

In May 2018, the project team successfully sent 2 tuna tracked on the blockchain from Fiji to New York for the Ethereal Summit where participants were able to view the story of the tuna used in the sushi they were eating.

The next phase of this project is now being implemented which is to trace Fiji-caught fish into the New Zealand market. TraseAble Solutions is working with the Fijian fishing companies and NZ importers and retailers to get this project underway.

 Apart from this supply chain and traceability project, TraseAble Solutions has been fostering a blockchain community in Fiji and co-hosted the Regional Blockchain TechCamp with the US Embassy in Suva, Fiji, April 2018. For more information, visit www.traseable.com -Via Garamut News.

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