Smart supply chains

Project locations: Ayr, Mareeba, Katherine, Adelaide

Project partners: T-Provenance Pty Ltd ; Manbulloo Limited ; Queensland Fruit & Vegetable Growers Ltd (Growcom)

Project summary and impacts

The Smart Supply Chains project developed and tested innovative technologies to improve food quality, traceability and transparency across northern Australia’s horticulture supply chains. Using the mango industry as a case study, researchers worked with industry partners to combine quality assessment sensors, smart logistics tracking and blockchain technology to create a secure, real-time system that tracked produce from paddock to retailer.

The project demonstrated how digital technologies can provide objective measures of fruit quality, shelf life and handling conditions while improving the flow of information between growers, transport operators, retailers and consumers. The resulting platform increased traceability, reduced duplication of data collection and supported more efficient supply chain management.

By helping producers meet growing consumer and retailer expectations around food safety, provenance and product integrity, the project strengthened the competitiveness of northern Australian produce. The technologies developed also have potential applications across other horticultural and food industries, creating opportunities for wider adoption and future export market growth.