Blockchain and alcohol in Africa, an unlikely but perfect pairing
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African regions continue to see further advancement in Blockchain adoption, with the beer brewing megacompany AB InBev providing new sources of revenue for ingredients grown and sourced from farms across the continent.
InBev is a Belgium company in the food, drink, and tobacco industry with a market cap of over 89 Billion USD. Some of the more famous brands in their product line include Budweiser, Stella Artois, and Skol.
The company just recently was included in the Forbes top 50 blockchain companies, and will very likely open up more discussion for the alcohol markets and ingredient sourcing potential possible across Africa.
Africas Alcohol and Beer Market
In South Africa alone, there is a population of 58 million people and growing demand for beer consumption and production. According to Yahoo, the African continent misses out on the top 10 beer consuming locations but has grown to around 215 craft breweries in the past few years, with an explosion of new companies, unfortunately, all sharing the same issues for distribution and market entry. In spite of issues for newer and developing products, South Africa is the world’s 12th largest beer producer and generated over 35 billion in sales in 2019.
10- 14% Growth in the Craft beer industry alone is expected from now until 2023
The Problem, and Blockchain DeCo solution
Access to mainstream markets
With the vast majority control of the industry currently in the hands of SABMiller, Heineken, and Castel to name a few of the leading brands, entry into the market for newer products and breweries have become extremely difficult, leading to less competition and innovation for the industry. Many of these new companies have problems with streamlining and monitoring revenue streams, as well as working with third parties due to corruption and extortionate fees required to access markets.
Blockchain is certainly a technology that can grant access to markets, not just locally, but globally. AB InBev has already shown Blockchain to be a possible path for businesses to consider, with their use of the technology already in testing for proof of identity and payment to suppliers well underway. Counteracting theft and corruption for payments is a huge advantage as to why blockchain would benefit farm to shelf processes, aiding the farmers just as much as the final shelf product buying customers.
Safety and regulation
The end product of any consumable in food and beverages should adhere to basic principles, including health and cleanliness. With many small businesses aiming to break into these markets, the need for fair approval and efficient testing is ever-growing. Unfortunately, corruption is high in many African regions and third parties can be persuaded to not follow the rules. With a blockchain system in place, verifying the testing, and confirming the end product meets quality control, companies can strive for innovation and entry to markets with a seal of approval, rather than hurt lives with poor production and health risk consumables.
Decentralized Ecosystem
With blockchain services growing across all markets, the need for an easy entry point is key, for consumers and businesses. One place where access to services for health, food and beverage, security, and banking is available, globally. A one-stop-solution is necessary.
Blockchain is not the answer for every industry, however, in this case, the potential is clear to see.
