Share this article
Shellfish Plant Is Putting Scallops on IBM's Food Tracking Blockchain
The system records the weight and location of the scallops as they are taken from the ocean and tracks them across the supply chain.
Updated May 9, 2023, 3:03 a.m. Published Oct 17, 2019, 12:00 p.m.
Make us preferred on Google
A seafood plant is working with IBM to track the provenance of fresh scallops using blockchain technology.
The Raw Seafoods plant in Fall River, Massachusetts, is collaborating with IBM Food Trust, a digital system for tracing food between retailers and suppliers.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters
A fleet of scallopers owned by Capt. Danny Eilersten will upload data about each catch sourced in a local fishing ground onto the blockchain platform, IBM announced on Thursday.
When Eilersten’s boats catch a scallop, the system records its weight, the vessel’s longitude, latitude and name, and the time the shellfish was caught, and sends the data via satellite to IBM’s blockchain. Workers on-board then store the scallops in a bag and label it with a barcode that links to the same information.
The project also shares data with distributors, suppliers and retailers, including when a boat landed port-side and when each scallop lot was hand graded, selected, packed and shipped to its final destination. Raw Seafoods plans to launch a mobile app allowing customers to access scallop provenance starting this November.
“The big picture for us is to have consumers have more trust in the seafood they’re eating,” Daniel McQuade, vice president of marketing at Raw Seafoods, told CoinDesk. “We’re trying to solve the fear of fish in both restaurants and markets.”
Conservationist group Oceana recently tested 400 seafood samples from 250 U.S. locations for authenticity. It found that 20 percent were mislabeled. Imported seafood, which makes up the total majority consumed in the U.S., may be more susceptible to mislabeling because of the potential to pass off fish and gain higher profits, McQuade said.
Other participants in the Raw Seafoods project include Santa Monica Seafoods, a seafood distributor, and restaurants like TAPS Fish House and Brewery in Orange County, CA, and Santa Monica Seafoods Market & Cafes. Since its launch in Oct. 2018, IBM Food Trust has signed up 170 companies for its blockchain and conducted some 17 million transactions, said Suzanne Livingston, offering director for IBM Food Trust.
Fishing ships are required by law to record when they make trips, how many pounds they land, and when they return to port, making distributed database technology a natural fit. The IBM Food Trust system also allows Raw Seafoods to buy product directly from fishers as opposed to from auctions or depots. Fishers can send images and videos along with the data for customers to see when the seafood plant’s app launches.
McQuade hopes the system will also help fisheries manage their scallop stocks more effectively, matching up supply and demand.
He said:
“The government says this boat can go out only so many days a year and it can only go to certain areas. We know these stores are going to be very busy in November and December. We’ll actually go to the boat owner and say ‘hold onto some of your trips … versus you using all your trips in June and July.’”
Scallops image via Shutterstock
More For You
KuCoin captured a record share of centralised exchange volume in 2025, with more than $1.25tn traded as its volumes grew faster than the wider crypto market.
What to know:
- KuCoin recorded over $1.25 trillion in total trading volume in 2025, equivalent to an average of roughly $114 billion per month, marking its strongest year on record.
- This performance translated into an all-time high share of centralised exchange volume, as KuCoin’s activity expanded faster than aggregate CEX volumes, which slowed during periods of lower market volatility.
- Spot and derivatives volumes were evenly split, each exceeding $500 billion for the year, signalling broad-based usage rather than reliance on a single product line.
- Altcoins accounted for the majority of trading activity, reinforcing KuCoin’s role as a primary liquidity venue beyond BTC and ETH at a time when majors saw more muted turnover.
- Even as overall crypto volumes softened mid-year, KuCoin maintained elevated baseline activity, indicating structurally higher user engagement rather than short-lived volume spikes.
More For You
Coinbase CEO says Big banks now view crypto as an ‘existential’ threat to their business
Brian Armstrong returns from World Economic Forum with message: traditional finance is taking crypto seriously
What to know:
- Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said a top executive at one of the world’s 10 largest banks told him crypto is now the bank’s “number one priority” and an “existential” issue.
- At Davos, Armstrong highlighted tokenization of assets and stablecoins as major themes, arguing they could broaden access to investments for billions while threatening to bypass traditional banks.
- He described the Trump administration as the most crypto-forward government globally, backing efforts like the CLARITY Act, and predicted that AI agents will increasingly use stablecoins for payments outside conventional banking rails.
Top Stories
