Recently, many businesses have been learning and implementing the compliance with GLOBAL GAP standards and the ability to apply blockchain technology in traceability of agricultural products and foodstuffs.
GLOBAL GAP standard network was available at 5 continents and it developed with more than 10 different languages, with a customer base of about 210,000 certified companies in more than 130 countries around the world.
The certification firm's compliance assessment and enforcement system (branch of GLOBAL GAP) have been being leverages for agribusinesses and farmers around the world. So that agribusinesses can participate in the global agricultural value chain by their self. The GLOBAL GAP governance model is close and practical through the form of governance by the Steering Committee elected by the members. The network has more than 1,000 international experts working on technical departments, national working groups, other specialized groups; and more than 2,000 auditors working at more than 160 consulting firms to help certified farmers globally. In addition, through GLOBAL GAP's online database, the user can check whether the product is certified or not and the validity of the certificate. One the otherhand, the GLOBAL GAP standard may conform to other standards in the world with 13 digits LGN code symbol. GLOBALGAP currently has a registration system to certify up to 600 agricultural, forestry and ornamental biological products.
(Photo Vistip) GLOBALGAP’s Senior expert was evaluating the application of GLOBAL GAP standards in Vietnam in recent years
Currently, when we trace the agiricultural product by manually or QR codes, that merely lead to the website of the business supplying that product. Doing so causes QR codes not to properly perform the traceability function, but reduces transparency when enterprises actively put or edit information on agricultural safety according to their wishes or the supplier of stamps QR codes also can interfere with product information editing.
With Blockchain technology, information cannot be edited because each data of each stage will be saved as a block and serialized on the chain in real-time sequence; information posted must be consensus of all participants of the chain (production, packaging, distribution ...) and the posted information cannot be taken down or changed. Through the application of this technology to the production and commercialization of agricultural products, users will be provided necessary information throughout the process from cultivating, planting, harvesting and packaging, storage, transport ... as well as farming scale, producer and stakeholders' information throughout the cycle from production to consumption stage in order to enhance consumer's confidence in general and importers in particular for the quality and safety of agricultural products.
The solution of food traceability by QR code and Blockchain technology brings benefits to consumers, food manufacturers and distributors as well.
(Photo: VISTIP): Representative of Embassy of Australia in Vietnam with his speech at Blockchain Improves Agricultural supply chain Workshop in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
With the trend of science and technology internationalization and the fourth industrial revolution with the rapid development of the Internet of Things (IoT); Artificial intelligence (AI), big data (Bigdata), the application of GLOBAL GAP and Blockchain technology help the government agencies to control the transparency of information of entities in the value and supply chain; It also help the Government to have a clearer view of market activities and can query any stage of the process when there is a need for inspection. Thanks to this transparency, Blockchain technology and GLOBAL GAP certification also play an important role in fighting fraud in the agricultural sector and food business for better food market in the country as well as on over the world, it is necessary to think that in the coming time, Vietnamese government needs to have specific policies and programs for people as well as businesses to understand and apply and promote the advantages of GLOBAL GAP standards and Blockchain technology for Vietnam's agricultural setor in order to have more and more agricultural products that licensed to be exported to the overseas such as Australia, Japan, the United States ... as well as to expand the scope of supply to super fastidious markets in developed countries.