IBM Food Trust, Walmart’s blockchain-based food traceability system, launched in 2018 with a demonstration that became one of the most frequently cited proof points for enterprise blockchain. A mango that had previously taken six days to trace from store shelf to farm of origin could be traced in 2.2 seconds using the blockchain system. The demonstration was real. The subsequent adoption curve was more complicated.

Supply chain traceability is the enterprise blockchain use case that generated the most serious investment and the most careful subsequent analysis. The results are instructive for anyone evaluating where distributed ledger technology creates genuine value and where it serves primarily as marketing infrastructure for complexity that simpler systems could handle.