Integration of blockchain and artificial intelligence in a traceability system for the sustainable soybean production chain

• Grant number: 24/14018-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate (Direct)
• Start date: October 01, 2024
• End date: July 31, 2028
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy
• Principal Investigator: Elisabete Aparecida de Nadai Fernandes
• Grantee: Robson Campos de Lima
• Host Institution: Centro de Energia Nuclear na Agricultura (CENA). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Piracicaba , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 22/12732-5 - Transparency in the Brazilian production chains of agricultural export commodities: a holistic study of elemental and isotopic fingerprints, AP.TEM

Abstract

Soybean production in Brazil, predominantly in the south and center-west, has expanded to transition areas between the Cerrado and the Amazon due to its economic importance and technological advances that make cultivation in the region viable, generating concern about the impacts of deforestation. The traceability of the soy production chain is an issue of growing interest for Brazilian agribusiness, in view of the legislation of importing countries that seek to ban products from deforested areas. The largest global producer of soybeans, the country faces the challenge of ensuring that production meets the ESG criteria of environmentally sustainable, socially committed practices and responsible corporate management. To provide security and transparency to the traceability system, intrinsic characteristics of soybeans, such as chemical composition, have been investigated. The elemental profile obtained through highly sensitive and metrologically rigorous analytical techniques, such as neutron activation analysis (NAA) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), combined with artificial intelligence, can be used to authenticate information. Solutions based on blockchain technology provide an immutable and auditable trail, allowing all interested parties to reliably verify information about the Brazilian soy production chain. The project seeks to create a prototype traceability system using blockchain, artificial intelligence and elementary profiling. By guaranteeing the authenticity of the information provided throughout the entire production chain, the system will be able to overcome technical barriers faced by Brazilian soybeans on the international market and ensure compliance with ESG production practices. (AU)