Atos sets Blockchain to work for the agriculture sector with ACTA (Agricultural Technical Institutes)

Atos and ACTA (Agricultural Technical Institutes) partner to launch a range of projects for the agriculture sector on Blockchain.

The economic, environmental and social challenges surrounding the agriculture and agri-food industry call for innovation which includes leverage digital technologies, while taking into account the requirements of the whole chain, from producer to consumer.

Made popular by its use for the secure exchange of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Blockchain is expanding and is now being used for many other applications. Based on the principle of sharing data within collaborating ecosystems without a ‘trusted intermediary’, Blockchain offers new ways to address the challenges in the agriculture and agri-food sectors.

Combining their vision of digital transformation, Atos and ACTA’s ‘Numérique & Agriculture’ network are joining forces to launch projects which aim to show how Blockchain can be used through practical use cases. They are focused on three themes:

Managing consent and data sharing: in a context where the interoperability of applications is a growing demand from farmers, how can we ensure data protection (within a European framework which will become even stricter in 2018), while encouraging more effective data sharing, and optimising governance and trust?

Traceability of productions: a major challenge to guarantee fair value chains from producer to consumer. What opportunities are there, and for which sectors? What is the impact on specifications, certification procedures, and sanitary quality?

Smart contract: automating transaction control and triggering instant payment to the producer. How can we guarantee transparency and confidentiality? What applications are there for different stakeholders, what impact is there on trade relations between producers and buyers and disintermediation?

Atos brings, in particular, its expertise, its cyber-security products applied to connected objects and digital identity management, in order to create real conditions of trust in the new decentralized ecosystems. Cryptography, digital identification, authentication, and electronic signatures are intrinsic to the implementation of Blockchain technologies in order to achieve complete trust.

Philippe Lecouvey, Managing Director of ACTA, explains: “Faced with the agricultural sectors and agro-economy challenges, ACTA is positioned as an innovation catalyst to invent new, open and multidisciplinary ecosystems that will meet the challenges of farmers and that will value the whole of the sector by providing transparency and efficiency. This is a profound transformation, and we rely on a partner like Atos to facilitate the adoption of new uses and to make technology a lever of confidence and innovation.”

Christophe Brizot, South West Regional Director, Atos, adds: “Atos is proud to contribute alongside ACTA to an initiative that aims to strengthen the value chain of a sector such as the agro-economy. We want to build a real new momentum around Blockchain, in co-innovation with stakeholders, and lend our technological expertise, such as in Big Data, IoT and cybersecurity, to those in the agriculture and agri-economy sectors.”

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