Welcome to Farm to Fork: The Innovators. In today’s episode, I sit down with Marieke de Ruyter de Wildt, the founder of Open Food Chain, a blockchain-powered platform revolutionizing global food traceability.

In this conversation, we dive into the current state of data and technology in the global food supply chain, how Asia is catching up to the U.S. in supply chain innovation, and why manufacturers play a critical role in driving change. Marieke also explains how blockchain can solve major inefficiencies, ensuring food safety, improving data transparency, and reducing supply chain costs. We also tackle misconceptions about traceability, including why it’s often overlooked, and how it could benefit both farmers and consumers. If you want to understand the future of food traceability and innovation, you won’t want to miss this episode!

Connect with David:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidmaloni/
https://datumfs.com/

Connect with Marieke:
https://nl.linkedin.com/in/marieke-de-ruyter-de-wildt-9501086
https://www.openfoodchain.com/

Timestamps

00:00 – Introduction to Farm to Fork: The Innovators and today’s guest
00:37 – Meet Marieke de Ruyter de Wildt: Her background and passion for food supply chains
02:22 – What is Open Food Chain, and how does it use blockchain for traceability?
05:45 – The surprising inefficiencies in food supply chain data
08:30 – Why is Asia catching up to the U.S. in food supply chain technology?
10:12 – The challenges of old data systems and why new solutions struggle to be adopted
14:40 – How blockchain ensures trust, accuracy, and food safety
18:25 – Why major food companies resist traceability and how regulation is (or isn’t) working
22:57 – How Open Food Chain is structured and who benefits the most
28:08 – The cost savings and efficiency gains from better supply chain data
31:12 – The role of Gen Z and consumer demand in driving transparency
34:45 – How Open Food Chain works with industry leaders and future plans
40:50 – How to get in touch with Open Food Chain and next steps

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