Context

This project of Oxfam works with small-scale rice farmers in Preah Vihear province, Central North of Cambodia. These farmers produce organic rice. Their average land size is between 1 to 2 hectares and they produce on average 2.5 to 3 tons of organic rice per year (single crop).

Many groups of farmers lack power and information for negotiating with middlemen, traders and companies on price and other conditions, especially on export-oriented products. Farmers are often under pressure to sell off their product early as they have to repay their loans.

The project tests how farmers can be empowered by having information about their supply chain and by electronic verification of their contract conditions. The project will introduce cashless payments to a number of farmers. Payments into bank accounts enable electronic verification of payment by the buyer to a farmer, being a correct and timely (according to the contract) payment or not.

The project will test a digital contract between primary producers organized in an Agricultural Cooperative, a Cambodian rice exporter and a manufacturer in The Netherlands, to improve farmers’ livelihoods and their supply chain conditions. The project will design an electronic user platform with an application (app) providing full value chain transparency and traceability to the cooperative, exporter and importer, but also to the end consumers. In that way, the consumer will know for sure that farmers have been paid correctly for their rice which contributes to their sustainable livelihood. The consumers are enabled to make an informed and conscious choice for a rice that complies with social conditions and fair production standards. This project provides transparency and information to the value chain actors. This is expected to provide small rice farmers with more influence so as to and secure their own livelihoods.

Strategic partners

Implementing partners

Approach

The project tests the application of blockchain technology in the rice chain along with consumer communication.

To properly test the blockchain concept and applications in practice, this project focuses on:

  • Introduce blockchain technology to the organic rice value chain by registering all chain actors with unique identification codes on blockchain.
  • Introduce a smart contract between farmers, their agricultural cooperative, exporting companies and manufacturing company to ensure proper payments and transparency.
  • Design a consumer communication component from the Cambodian countryside to the retailer.

Below is a 2min video explaining about BlockChain

Tagged with
BlocRiceCambodiaBlockChainOrganicRice