Blockchain-Enabled Traceability Framework to Improve Transparency in Supply Chain Management

Introduction

Traceability in supply chain management is the capability to locate and trace the path of products, components, and materials throughout all the steps of the supply chain, starting at their origin point to the end of consumption (Dabbene et al., 2014). In the past, traceability systems were mainly used to identify food contamination-related problems and to ensure product safety (Montet & Dey, 2017). However, in contemporary globalized supply chains, traceability systems assumed a significant amount of responsibility. Traceability is currently viewed as an important factor to be able to comply with regulations, develop consumer trust, and manage risks, including product recalls and counterfeits, in an effective way (Raman & Pramod, 2017; Stevenson & Busby, 2015). The increasing complexity and interdependency of supply chains have been more reasons that call for the demand for functional traceability mechanisms, as they have done in the past. For example, Blaettchen et al. (2025) noted that the leaders of the industry certainly have already acknowledged the advantages of traceability because a large proportion of respondents to a survey stated that they believe not only that traceability is necessary but also that its implementation is a complex issue. All these data systems are fragmented and standardized, but mainly because of the sheer volume of transactions in the multitiered supply networks, this complexity can and will continue to be present. Resilient and responsible supply chains are critical to the establishment of effective traceability systems, enabling businesses to be quick to respond to any disruptions and prevent risks before their occurrence in an anticipatory stance (Razak et al., 2021). Blockchain technology has been conceptualized as one of the revolutionary concepts to increase supply chain transparency and traceability (Ogunwole et al., 2024). Its main characteristics, such as decentralization, immutability, and cryptographic security, were designed to solve most of the limitations of the existing mechanism of traceability that are notorious because they are centralized (Hossain et al., 2024). Blockchain has the potential of making an identical and non-modified version of the truth on product movements, transactions, and events available to all supply chain participants by providing a shared record (Rejeb et al., 2019). With this new technology of a decentralized ledger, the movement of goods can be tracked at any time along the whole journey, between the place of origin and the end consumer, thus economizing a considerable array of administrative expenses and decreasing the possibility of fraud (Rejeb et al., 2019; Roeck et al., 2019). Blockchain enhances trust and cooperation between different stakeholders, such as suppliers and end-users, because any information that is shared among them has been proven and confirmed (Shi et al., 2021). Because blockchain can be used in a variety of ways, including food, pharmaceutical, manufacturing, and luxury goods, it has already been proved to help create more transparent, and consequently more responsible, supply chains (de Boissieu et al., 2021). Despite the acknowledged significance of traceability and the high degree of identified potential in blockchain technology, a significant problem remains in achieving comprehensive transparency in complex global supply chains. These opaques can result in various issues, including product counterfeits, unethical sourcing conditions, a lack of effective recall efforts, and worries about regulatory compliance (Onuma, 2025). The reasoning behind this research is that an effective and scalable model is required to exploit blockchain, and hence, these shortcomings can be effectively removed. Despite numerous studies on the topic being conducted, there remains a deficiency of empirical literature to provide a practical insight into how such a framework can be applied and proven with the help of real datasets (Liu & Panagiotakos, 2022). In particular, this research must demonstrate how a blockchain-based system can combine different data sources and increase the traceability indicators; this research also needs to offer actionable data that can enhance the overall visibility and strength of the supply chain. The purpose of this paper is to address these issues by developing and testing a comprehensive framework that bridges the gap between potential and reality. The primary objective of this research is to develop and validate a blockchain-enabled traceability framework to improve transparency in supply chain management. The objectives of this study are as follows: