From Cost-Effectiveness to Contextual Fit: Adapting Blockchain Traceability Frameworks from UK Food Supply Chains to the Nigerian Market
Domaine:
agriculturesocioeconomicType de record:
paper
Créateur:
Chi
Éditeur:
Hôte:
Purpose: Recent research has demonstrated that blockchain-based traceability systems outperform traditional track-and-trace infrastructure on cost-effectiveness grounds within developed market contexts, particularly in UK food supply chains. However, the structural conditions underpinning this cost advantage reliable digital connectivity, formal supply chain actors, and established regulatory frameworks differ fundamentally in emerging markets. This paper examines how the cost-effectiveness case for blockchain traceability must be reconceptualised for the Nigerian food supply chain context, and proposes a contextualised implementation framework adapted to Nigerian structural realities.
Design/methodology/approach: The paper adopts a conceptual framework development approach, grounded in evidence synthesis from: (1) the authors' prior systematic review of blockchain in UK food supply chains (Odukwu, 2025); (2) secondary data on the Nigerian logistics and food supply chain sector; and (3) relevant literature on blockchain deployment in low-resource and emerging market contexts. The Nigerian Contextual Fit Framework (NCFF) is proposed as a structured tool for evaluating and adapting blockchain traceability architectures for Nigerian deployment.
Findings: The paper finds that while the cost-effectiveness arguments for blockchain traceability hold in principle for Nigerian food supply chains, where post-harvest losses of approximately 40% and food fraud impose enormous economic and social costs. The architectural assumptions underpinning UK blockchain deployments are largely inapplicable. Nigerian FSCs are characterised by informality, low connectivity, energy instability, weak regulatory enforcement, and dominance of smallholder farmers and market traders. A mobile-first, lightweight distributed ledger architecture, community-based verification mechanisms, and USSD-compatible interfaces are proposed as contextually appropriate alternatives to the sensor-intensive, internet-dependent models deployed in UK and US retail supply chains.
Originality/value: This paper makes the first systematic attempt to apply UK blockchain traceability evidence to the Nigerian FSC context, filling a gap in literature that is dominated by large-market or Asian studies. The Nigerian Contextual Fit Framework (NCFF) provides a practical and theoretically grounded tool for policymakers, technology developers, and NGOs seeking to deploy blockchain traceability in West African food systems.
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