Managing disruptions and risks amidst COVID-19 outbreaks: role of blockchain technology in developing resilient food supply chains

This study attempts to present a contribution of Blockchain Technology (BC-T) in managing disruptions, and risk caused by the COVID-19 outbreaks and extending profound support in developing resilient Food Supply Chains (FSCs). The effects of the pandemic can be witnessed on global supply chains in their demand & supply side disruptions and in the changing patterns of consumer buying in the food industry. The assessment of the disruptive factors is required to explore the present issues and promising resilient strategies to impart robustness to the FSCs for mitigating disruptions in the future. An integrated approach of Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP) and Weighted Assessment Sum Product Assessment (WASPAS) is employed to assess the factors related to sourcing, lean, workforce, and flexibility, as well as evaluation of the BC-T enabled FSCs resilient strategies that mitigate the effect of disruption during the pandemic. The findings exhibit that ‘Sourcing related’ is the most affecting disruptive factor causing distress in the FSCs and ‘flexibility resilient strategy’ is the most relevant resilient strategy for BC-T enabled FSCs. The BC-T acts as a catalyst in enhancing the flexibility, traceability, and shorter supply chain network structure that may help the FSCs to mitigate risk and disruption in the pandemic situation. The BC-T helps the FSCs to control the demand and supply shocks, and supports the organization with real-time monitoring and sharing information. This study provides insights to the decision-makers, managers, and other stakeholders to take significant decisions during an emergency.