在数字经济时代，数据的应用渗透到经济社会的各个领域，数据资源在产品和服务的生产中逐渐发挥与劳动力、资本、技术等具有同等重要的基础性作用，业已成为生产产品和服务不可或缺的一项生产要素。目前，对于数据要素在经济活动中如何发挥其价值在理论上的讨论还不充分，对于如何破解“数据孤岛”、数据拥有者之间的信任等制约数据要素价值实现的问题尚缺乏深入的认识。区块链技术的应用为数据要素发挥其作用、实现其价值提供了新的条件。本文通过对食品供应链的考察，分析区块链技术在数据要素实现其经济价值中的作用。在阐述数据要素的内涵及其价值实现的机理的基础上，通过对传统食品追溯系统与基于区块链的食品追溯系统的对比分析，梳理了食品供应链中的数据要素及其发挥的作用；进而归纳出区块链技术对数据要素价值实现的作用。本研究表明，区块链技术的应用能够从增加数据要素的数量、打通“数据孤岛”、优化生产要素的配置方式、增进数据拥有者之间的信任、提升数据使用的安全性五个方面促进数据要素的价值实现。

In the era of the digital economy, data, like labor, capital and technology, plays a fundamental role in economic activities, becoming a factor of production in the supply of goods and services. Currently, how the data factor realizes its value in economic activities are not sufficiently discussed. More studies are needed for addressing issues such as “isolated data islands” and distrust between data owners, that hinder the value realization of data factor. The blockchain technology provides a new condition for the data factor to play its role and realize its economic value. This paper, using the food supply chain as a case, to study roles of the blockchain technology in the realization of data’s economic value. By comparing traditional and blockchain-based food tractability system, we reveal the data involved in food supply chain and the roles they play, and then summarize how the blockchain technology influence data factor on realizing its economic value. Our study shows that the blockchain technology facilitates data’s value realization by increasing the amount of data, linking “isolated data islands”, optimizing the allocation of factors of production, improving the trusts between data users and enhancing the security in data use.