βFSCM: An enhanced food supply chain management system using hybrid blockchain and recommender systems

Abstract

Blockchain technology has gained traction in Food Supply Chain Management (FSCM), enhancing traceability and transparency. The existing deployments of public or private blockchains face issues in achieving an optimal balance between transparency and decentralization. This work proposes a hybrid blockchain model complemented by an Access Control (AC) mechanism to bolster security, reliability, and usability within FSCM systems. Furthermore, the integration of a recommender system is proposed to utilize data analytics and machine learning for personalizing product offerings and optimizing inventory management, aiming to boost efficiency and consumer satisfaction. The synergy between the hybrid blockchain framework and the recommender system is anticipated to cultivate a more engaged, efficient, and gratified supply chain ecosystem. The model significantly enhances monitoring in 30% of the use cases and supports transparency in a quarter. It also reduces vulnerability cases by 20%. Inventory management is markedly improved, reducing overstock by 25%, confirming the effectiveness of the proposed hybrid blockchain approach.