IBM’s Blockchain technology
IBM has partnered with Farmer Connect to launch a blockchain supported app that allows consumers to make informed choices and promote sustainability by letting them learn details about the coffee beans they purchase. The app, called “Thank My Farmer,” was launched at The Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas on the 6th of January 2020. The Founder of Farmer Connect, an organization that works towards transparency and sustainability in agriculture, explained the app by saying, “After scanning a QR-code, consumers are taken straight to a product page that gives details about the coffee they are drinking. Below that description is an interactive map that shows the journey the coffee has taken. We say you can travel the world through a cup of coffee, and we’d like to help consumers visualize that.” IBM’s Blockchain technology powers the app that tracks the coffee beans’ journey.
Each participant in the network, be it, farmers, wholesalers, or retailers, have been providing with a level of permission that determines their access to the blockchain network that allows them to view the details and make additions. It will enable better interactions on the origin of the coffee between its stakeholders, including the consumer. David Behrends, the founder of Farmer Connect, said, “If we have the geolocation of farmers, those farms will appear on the map. If we don’t have this information, we show the steps the coffee underwent. For instance, coffee starts as a cherry; the beans get taken out of the cherry and are washed and dried. Each step is performed in different segments before the product goes to ports of export and import. Consumers can click on the interactive map to learn more about how coffee has been sourced, traveled, and transformed.”
The app demonstrated using Bluestone Lane coffee products at the CES. It expected to hit the market early this year and users in the US and Canada, Europe will be able to track their Folgers 1850 and Beyers 1769 respectively.
Another unique feature of this app is to allow consumer’s use of blockchain technology to make direct contributions to the farmer who sourced their coffee. This will help to fund local projects, and users can track their participation on the app, providing transparency. In the future, the app will connect users directly to a farmer’s digital wallet.
Calling the app an attempt to humanize the relationship between consumers and their coffee, Behrends also said that it lets consumers understand the process involving coffee making better. IBM leader Chang also clarified that the app powered by its blockchain technology but is not part of IBM’s Food Trust project as its goal is not to test a technique but to create a sustainable network.