Abstract: Against the backdrop of increasingly strict global carbon emission reduction requirements and the popularization of the concept of sustainable development, national policy guidance and the innovative application of blockchain technology continue to drive supply chain enterprises to attach growing importance to carbon emission reduction practices. Under the carbon trading mechanism, this paper constructs a low-carbon supply chain model empowered by blockchain technology in which manufacturers and retailers jointly invest in carbon emission reduction, considering the incentive policy of government subsidies for blockchain construction. The independent emission reduction and cooperative emission reduction strategies of the low-carbon supply chain are analyzed. The study shows that regardless of whether blockchain technology is applied or not, cooperative strategy is more helpful than independent strategy for reducing carbon emission and expanding production. And the cooperative strategy is more conducive to realizing an agile low-carbon supply chain. Blockchain technology can empower enterprises to reduce carbon emissions and expand production under the compensatory effect of cooperative strategy, but it depends on the empowerment level of blockchain and the cost of blockchain usage. Moreover, the application of blockchain technology requires the product market to be more responsive than the carbon trading market to avoid the Prisoner’s Dilemma. The government’s incentive policy of subsidizing retailers that apply blockchain technology is conducive to easing the cost pressure on retailers, but it cannot directly reduce carbon emission. The government should design a diversified blockchain support policy, expand the scope of subsidy targets, and diversify the subsidy means.

Key words: blockchain technology, emission reduction strategies, carbon trading, government subsidy