How will Blockchain disrupt the Agricultural Sector?

Blockchain has revolutionised almost every possible sector and Agriculture is nowhere behind.

The agricultural sector could see a global increase in the exchange of produce with the help of Blockchain based digital currencies or tokens and can affect everyone from rural farmers to consumers everywhere.

The rise in the consumer consciousness towards food safety and blockchain’s ability to provide a secure network along with data security has opened a lot of opportunities in the agricultural sector. Companies of all sizes are now trying to develop exhaustive blockchain applications that can play a vital role in channelling various processes in this sector.

In this article, we will try and understand the different ways in which Blockchain can disrupt the agricultural sector.

Food Safety

With the growing awareness of consumers regarding the food they consume, blockchain can be the technology that ensures accountability, traceability and the quality of the food that’s being supplied. Food fraud accounts for almost 30–40 billion dollars annually and there is a substantial increase in the cases report for food allergies and adulteration and blockchain can help resolve them all.

Food Supply Chain

Information asymmetry is one of the primary reasons for inefficient supply chains in developing nations. It is due to this reason, that the farmers do not receive their due share in spite of being the most important part of the food chain. Blockchain helps simplify the supply chain by managing the data across a complex network of farmers, middlemen, brokers, distributors, processors, regulators, retailers and finally the consumers. Having the right information about the supply chain will also regulate the food waste globally and lead to a sustainable living.

Authentic Inputs

Farmers are unaware or do not have the right knowledge to understand if the inputs they are for their products are authentic or not. Lack of knowledge is one reason why they get fooled by local retailers in using fake products that affect the final product as well. By improving the traceability of each product that they use, right from the manufacturer to the retailers, farmers might get the right information about the authenticity and the source of the materials they are purchasing.

Land Registrations

Most fraudulent activities happen when it comes to purchasing and selling of lands. Blockchain applications will help in managing all sorts of data regarding the land and make it publicly available so that people have the right information when they plan to buy the land. It will bring transparency to the whole process and will also result in easier contracting for the leasing of land.

Disbursements of Subsidies

The agricultural sector is highly dependant upon the government subsidies and mismanagement of these subsidies affect the farmers the most as they do not receive the amount they are being promised. Blockchain will make the system more transparent and lead the effective distribution of the subsidies that will give the farmers the right share they deserve.

Conclusion

They are still a few roadblocks that need to be overcome before we start reaping the benefits of blockchain in the agricultural sector. It will bring democracy to the agricultural sector by decentralising information and hand it over to the general public and thereby build trust and bring transparency in the process.

To know more about how blockchain will transform agriculture, keep reading our Blog.