The need for an industry-driven, technology-agnostic global framework for 
seafood traceability was first publicly recognized by the World Economic 
Forum's Global Agenda Council on Oceans in 2013. It points out that 20% or more 
of fish catch results from "illegal, unreported or unregulated" fishing, and 
thus escapes basic fisheries management. The growing market demands also add to 
enterprises' interests in improving transparency within seafood supply chains. 
To meet the increasing requirements, it's necessary to standardise business 
practices and harmonise regulations to promote interoperable traceability 
within the seafood sector.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1010126/GDST_Seafood_Trackathons.jpg
Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/738221/VeChain_Logo.jpg 

The GDST is set to hold its second and third Seafood Traceability Hackathons ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2609760-1&h=2173978523&u=https%3A%2F%2Ftraceability-dialogue.org%2Fgdst-news-2%2Fgdst-seafood-traceability-hackathon-2%2F&a=Seafood+Traceability+Hackathons 
) in Cologne, Germany from 21-22 October and in Bali from 26-27 October, 2019. 
Supported by multiple leading organizations and enterprises in the industry, 
such as GS1 Germany ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2609760-1&h=2287602959&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gs1.org%2F&a=GS1+Germany+ 
) and USAID Oceans and Fisheries Partnership ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2609760-1&h=3955025353&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.usaid.gov%2F&a=USAID+Oceans+and+Fisheries+Partnership 
), the hackathons serve as a grand gathering of real businesses and a platform 
that boosts the development of valuable applications that can be used to solve 
real problems facing the industry. GDST's mission is to establish an 
international business-to-business framework capable of supporting a variety of 
technologies and solutions to bolster inter-cooperation on seafood traceability 
practices. The initiative is co-convened by WWF ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2609760-1&h=3910959659&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.worldwildlife.org%2F&a=WWF 
) and IFT's Global Food Traceability Center ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2609760-1&h=3344327397&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ift.org%2Fglobal-food-traceability-center&a=IFT%27s+Global+Food+Traceability+Center. 
).

VeChain, the world's leading public blockchain platform, will support this 
cause and is the sole blockchain sponsor of both hackathons. The GDST has 
placed Blockchain Integration as one of the four major categories for 
contestants, which is a testament to the legitimacy and value-added 
contribution by blockchain in the traceability industry. 

VeChain will share with the Hackathon contestants its expertise in 
blockchain-powered traceability solutions that can be applied by a broad 
spectrum of seafood industry stakeholders from all parts of the supply chain. 
The winners of the Hackathons will be awarded prizes that include VTHO tokens 
valued up to 10,000 EUR cash equivalent to support their efforts in developing 
innovative blockchain applications. As an added bonus, top participants will 
have an exclusive chance to be included in the VeChain's accelerator and bounty 
programs ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2609760-1&h=3427868431&u=https%3A%2F%2Fbbs.vechainworld.io%2Fcategory%2F5%2Faccelerator-and-bounty-program&a=VeChain%27s+accelerator 
) connecting them with the large network of the VeChain Ecosystem.

More than 60 producers, processors, and retailers from across the world will be 
brought together to have in-depth discussions on seafood traceability. 
VeChain's Europe Project Manager and technology expert, Arnaud Bauer, will 
introduce how to develop effective applications based on the VeChain ToolChain 
APIs or the VeChainThor Blockchain. With DNV GL's extensive experience and 
expertise in blockchain technology adoption, participants will find it easier 
to build and leverage blockchain-based applications to empower their 
businesses. 

Over the past years, VeChain sees itself as an enabler in the blockchain 
ecosystem. With the release of the VeChain ToolChain ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2609760-1&h=2862340463&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vechain.com%2Fproduct%2Ftoolchain&a=VeChain+ToolChain 
), a powerful product that allows enterprises and individuals to adopt 
blockchain technology effortlessly, the technical hurdles to integrate 
blockchain technology is no longer an obstacle for businesses and enterprises. 
Participants in the hackathon, regardless of their proficiency in blockchain 
technology, will be able to develop applications that leverage blockchain 
technology smoothly. 

Apart from efforts to transform the Food & Beverage, LNG, Fast Fashion and 
Luxury industry, VeChain has been steadily branching out into more sectors, and 
will involve more users who are devoted to efficient traceability efforts. 
VeChain hopes to attract more builders with the hackathons to develop real 
world applications in the VeChain ecosystem and create more valuable 
transactions. 

Don't miss out on the GDST hackathons, come and join the leaders of seafood 
traceability industry and find out yourselves how VeChainThor Blockchain can be 
used to facilitate the real economy. 

Click here to register to participate the Seafood Traceability Hackathon ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2609760-1&h=1924829547&u=https%3A%2F%2Ftraceability-dialogue.org%2Fgdst-news-2%2Fgdst-seafood-traceability-hackathon-2%2F&a=Click+here+to+register+to+participate+the+Seafood+Traceability+Hackathon 
)

About GDST 
The Global Dialogue on Seafood Traceability (also referred to as the Dialogue) 
is an international, business-to-business platform established to advance a 
unified framework for interoperable seafood traceability practices. The 
Dialogue brings together a broad spectrum of seafood industry stakeholders from 
across different parts of the supply chain, as well as relevant civil society 
experts from diverse regions.

About VeChain
Launched in 2015, VeChain aims to connect blockchain technology to the real 
world by providing a comprehensive governance structure, a robust economic 
model, and IoT integration. VeChain is the pioneer of real-world applications 
using public blockchain technology, with international operations in Singapore, 
Luxembourg, Tokyo, Shanghai, Paris, Hong Kong, and San Francisco. Together with 
our strategic partners PwC and DNV GL, we have established cooperative 
relations with many leading enterprises in different industries, including 
Walmart China, BMW, BYD Auto, Haier, Bright Food, D.I.G, DB Schenker, PICC, 
etc. 

For more information about VeChain, please visit: www.vechain.com.

For news inquiries, please email: press@vechain.com.

SOURCE: VeChain