A new blockchain app from IBM will make it possible for coffee consumers who are interested in sustainability to trace the coffee they’re drinking.

The app is called Thank My Farmer and allows people to learn things about the coffee places from where they have gotten their so loved beverage and the farm where their coffee has been grown. Built in partnership with Farm Connect and using IBM’s blockchain, Thank My Farmer was unveiled in Las Vegas, at the Consumer Electronics Show. It’s supposed to launch this year.

The app is supported by 10 of the most important coffee organizations like The Colombian Coffee Growers Federation (FNC) and Beyers Koffie. It’s also very appreciated because it supports consumers to more informed decisions when it comes to their coffee choices, not to mention it helps with the promotion of coffee suppliers that are using environmentally friendly processing methods.

It isn’t the first time that blockchain technology is being used to make things transparent when it comes to the coffee supply chain, as Starbucks has said in May 2019 that it will use the Azure blockchain technology from Microsoft to inform consumers about their coffee, while the government in Ethiopia is exploring how blockchain tech could be used to track the country’s coffee exports.

With IBM’s Thank My Farmer, people will be able to scan QR codes from coffee jars and find out more about where their product is coming from, not to mention they’ll be able to make additional payments to coffee farmers. Founder and president of Farmer Connect, David Behrends explains,

“After scanning a QR-code, consumers are taken straight to a product page that gives details about the coffee they are drinking. Below that description is an interactive map that shows the journey the coffee has taken. We say you can travel the world through a cup of coffee, and we’d like to help consumers visualize that.”

While the app will be initially available only for some brands in Europe and the USA, IBM is looking to bring in other coffee producers and to create additional support pages for making donations to the communities from areas in which the coffee has been grown.

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