Industry Summary Articles

Ambrosus and the Swiss Coffee Alliance are proud to announce a groundbreaking new partnership.

Combining Ambrosus' proprietary sensor-to-Blockchain technology and the SCA's robust network of farmers, roasters, product developers, manufacturers and retailers, this partnership has the potential to transform the $81-billion global coffee market, unearthing new operating efficiencies.

Ambrosus Chief Executive Officer Angel Versetti said, "Swiss Coffee Alliance is one of the largest coffee trade-groups in Europe, and in the world. They play a vital role in the import/export dynamics of this market. We are excited to help the Alliance integrate the Ambrosus Blockchain into its consulting infrastructure, so we can together drive sustainable transformation, transparency and trust throughout global coffee value chains."  

Claudinei Monteiro, the SCA's chief technology officer, shared Versetti's enthusiasm, saying: "This is a truly transformative partnership that captures the full essence and spirit of Swiss ingenuity. With the Swiss Coffee Alliance's deep sector-expertise and Ambrosus' unrivaled decentralised supply-chain solution, we are going to create a more profitable and equitable ecosystem for all parties in the production line, with a key emphasis on those who have been abandoned by Wall Street." 

This partnership aims to correct a key dysfunction in the global coffee value chain: The unethical distribution of profits throughout the ecosystem. Specifically, while global coffee revenues soared from $30 billion in 1991 to $81 billion in 2016, smallholder coffee farmers have seen their incomes wither from 40 percent to under 10 percent in the same period, according to Fairtrade International.

To make matters worse, farmers in the top producing countries - Brazil, Colombia, Vietnam and Indonesia, which account for 60 percent of the world's production - live in poverty-line conditions, barely making enough money to cover the costs of production.

When you layer the coffee market's notorious price volatility and threat of climate change to crop yields, it becomes evident that global coffee supply chains need to be reimagined and fortified to give vulnerable, if not exploited, producers a fighting chance.

Coffee value-chain inequality is the problem that brought Ambrosus and the SCA together. Through the crosspollination of Ambrosus' next-generation Blockchain technology and smart- sensor hardware, with SCA's sector-specific expertise, this partnership is building the foundation for a more sustainable and equitable supply chain.

Ultimately, this alliance has the potential to make grower supply chains more efficient, so that the wild swings of the market, and the man-made degradation of mother nature, don't disenfranchise those who are most in need.

With Ambrosus and the Swiss Coffee Alliance leading the way, 2018 promises to be a fruitful year for an industry moving closer to a once-unthinkable equilibrium through the fusion of Blockchain and IoT innovation.

To view the original press release, please click here.

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