ARMONK, NY – International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) has secured a contract to build a food-monitoring system for a business in China, according to Bloomberg News. Being built for Shandong Commercial Group Co., the system is designed to ensure pork-product safety in Shandong, Terms of the project, which is scheduled to be completed in 2013, weren’t made public.

Earlier this month China’s government said it plans to revise laws to improve food safety. Demand for food-safety products in China is expected to increase 15 percent per annum through 2013, when the market will reach 13 billion yuan ($2 billion), an IBM spokesperson said.


IBM’s project is one part of a cold-supply chain Shandong province is building to assist in China’s efforts to improve food safety. The project will include full monitoring and tracing capabilities from farms to warehouses and retailers.

By 2015, China’s pork consumption may increase by almost 10 percent from the 2010 total to 57 million metric tons, one source said.