Colorado has produced a series of videos explaining the potential uses of blockchain technology in agriculture.

The state Department of Agriculture’s four videos discuss how blockchain can help agricultural businesses throughout the world create efficiencies and increase profit, according to a release. The project was funded by recent legislation.

“Blockchain technology is expanding across the food and agriculture industries and Colorado producers are looking for information about how it can increase market opportunities for their goods,” said CDA’s Director of Inspection and Consumer Services Mark Gallegos. “These videos are a good introduction to the concept of blockchain and how it can help track data along the food supply chain.”

State officials say the technology is an emerging tool that can facilitate the process of recording transactions and tracking assets on a secure, decentralized network, which can provide real time information about products or ingredients, help with the traceability of information for food safety, and improve transparency and reliability for banking and insurance purposes.

“Blockchain has several subcomponents that can support farmer profitability, which are explained in these videos. Digital traceability can help farmers cut costs by making it easier to find accurate information about what's happening on the farm, without searching through paper records,” said Jordan Lambert, Director of Ag Innovation and Partnerships at CSU Spur.

“Blockchain can also improve access to markets by helping farmers connect with buyers who care about how their food was grown,” Lambert said. “The smart contract component of blockchain can help improve farmer cash flow because it can release funds immediately to a farmer when a shipment of product meets contract terms, rather than waiting for the check to make its way through accounting systems and the mail.”

The developing technology can be used in all phases of the ag and food supply chain, including crop and soil monitoring, warehousing and distribution, and retail and marketing. Blockchain’s development can help provide transparency, security and streamlining of operations. It can also provide analytics and improve customer engagement and understanding of where their food comes from.

The videos can be viewed at ag.colorado.gov/blockchain.

Source: Colorado Department of Agriculture