A new partnership between the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Dutch NGO, the FairChain Foundation, will see the creation of a blockchain platform for an additional source of funding for cocoa farmers.
According to a Sprinwise report today, the move would also help both partners develop an “equitable” chocolate bar named “The Other Bar,” which would be produced using Ecuadorian-grown cocoa.
Each chocolate bar contains a Q.R. code that, when scanned, provides essential information to the buyers, including the amount paid to the farmer for using his cocoa in the production of the bar, and the exact GPS coordinates of the cocoa tree.
Interestingly, the Q.R. code also provides an avenue for buyers to contribute to the farmer via a token-based scheme, and buyers can get a certain percentage off the next chocolate bar purchased using the code.
Springwise noted that a token for The Other Bar project is valued at one-quarter of a cacao tree, and all the funding realized from the project will be used to support farmers to plant new trees.
The global cocoa industry has an estimated value of €92 billion ($102,258,920,000), with farmers of the produce receiving less than 3 percent of that value, which is not enough for them to earn a living, the report noted.
FairChain is hoping to use this partnership to help these cocoa farmers by ensuring they are paid better wages for their cocoa.
As per the report, the partnership would see cocoa farmers earn €3,080 ($3,423) per metric ton of cocoa under FairChain, which is higher than the €2,174 ($2,417) and €1,721 ($1,913) they got from FairTrade and Commercial buyers respectively for the same product.
The U.N. has engaged in numerous blockchain and crypto projects to render remarkable services to humanity.
Earlier this month, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), a subsidiary of the U.N. reportedly launched a crypto trust that would be beneficial to both children and young people globally.
