At first glance, they may not look like revolutionaries. Still, Bellucci founders Massimo and Marcello have already changed the olive oil industry for good.

When they started out with a shared passion for delicious, nutritious food and the dedication to make the world a better place, they had no idea their friendship would grow into an entity with international impact. At the time, each led a small, independent farming cooperative. They decided to combine their efforts, recognizing the need for unity in protecting the interests of both farmers and consumers - and so Bellucci was born.

The news of the time reported a rising demand for high-quality extra virgin olive oil - resulting in a surge of fraudulent and inferior oils, all attempting to pass themselves off as the real stuff. The friends vowed to ensure that all goods they brought to market be held to the highest of standards - from the ground up.

To back this commitment, they decided to take their transparency to a whole new level - leveraging modern technology to create their own traceability tool. Bellucci’s Rootie app was was rolled out in short order.

In 2015, the Rootie app was recognized at the world’s leading food expo, winning the Anuga International Award for Best Communication, and was commended by the jury “for successfully communicating the value of a traditional agricultural product”, through digital innovation.

The Bellucci founders are once more leading the way in their industry. A recent partnership between Certified Origins (Bellucci’s parent company - headquartered in Grosseto, Italy) and Oracle has resulted in an innovative application of blockchain technology, which these conscientious leaders are leveraging to take Bellucci’s food chain transparency to a whole new level.

Their plan is to incorporate Oracle’s technology to verify and offer complete transparency into the food supply chain, via an open ledger built on distributed blockchain technology. Tracking under the new blockchain verification system currently starts at the bottling facility, traveling all the way to US distribution - however the goal is to provide complete insight into the journey from farm to table.

Bellucci is already the leader in food traceability. As EVOO consumption increases worldwide and many new competitors are entering the market to meet demand, their commitment to offering precise, detailed information to ensure the authenticity of their product at all levels of production is profound.

This dedication to providing greater consumer transparency empowers customers in selecting truly authentic Italian EVOO - and the innovative decision to harness the power of blockchain technology will take Bellucci’s existing transparency practices a leap beyond the rest of the olive oil industry.

As CEO Gerard Jara stated, “Both the Rootie app and our trace-to-source use of blockchain technology allow us to fulfill consumer demand for honest, healthy, fresh and authentic Italian EVOO - at a time when integrity is what matters.”

If that’s not revolutionary progress - what is?