This could be an interesting case for blockchains. I normally am not a proponent of seeing everything thru that lens, but having a proper chain that is publicly verifiable is in the public’s interest. That said, there’s not a lot of incentive for people to reveal their supply chains — it’s often trade secret or hidden for a reason.

If there was a market behind it, then there might be a way. But good luck getting Samsung to tell you where their cobalt came from, or if some generic drug was made in a dangerous lab. Even if you knew it was Generic Factory 1736, it’s hard to know if that’s good or bad.