Information technology has
transformed the way we interact with ourselves and preferences. It’s so
ubiquitous that stakeholders in the ethnocultural food markets are now catering
to the needs of recent immigrants via online platforms such as My chopchop.
Customers can order online and the product will be delivered at their
doorsteps. Moreover, a few farmers and vendors at the Guelph’s Farmers market
are also becoming digital. In the last few months, I have paid for my goat milk
using square, a payment platform that is so easy that small businesses can
accept payment via a magstripe reader inserted to the phone jack or a cordless
peripheral for tapping.
Digital
Alternative Agriculture
An environmental and health
conscious individual can spend the weekend exploring his/her neighbourhood
without compromising the sustainability of the landscape. The day can start
with a coffee at Balzac's Coffee which promotes the production of organic,
artisanal, and sustainable products. Then one can explore the farmers’ market,
paying the local goat farmer using square which
strengthens the local economy, reduces transaction costs and ecological
footprint. But we still need to do more by learning from China and
incorporating digital payments such as Alipay and WeChat pay to the alternative
agriculture and ethnocultural food market. Chinese style digital payment
requires the use of a smartphone, internet connectivity and a bank account –
conditions that already exist in Canada. Even in countries where the internet
is not perfect, mobile money is working well. Different variations of mobile
payment, handled by telecommunication companies, have revolutionized African
countries such as Kenya (Mpesa), Tanzania,
Uganda, Zimbabwe, and Ghana.
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| Balzac'c Coffee Roasters, Guelph. |
Digital ecosystem is so
pronounce in China that nearly all transactions are done using digital payment
in cities like Hangzhou and Shenzhen. Mobile
payment does not require a smartphone (mobile phone can also be used). For
example Mpesa is used for nearly all transactions in Kenya. It has also made
the unbankable to be included in the financial landscape and economically
active. Both digital and mobile payments will enhance the ethnocultural market
and strengthen the viability of alternative agriculture. Stakeholders can
easily transact businesses in rural Ontario with or without the involvement of
a regular bank. A typical example of how small businesses are benefiting from
digital payment, is the case of my friend in Shanghai who sells cooked African
food and receives payment by his customers scanning his Quick Response Code (QR
Code) and payment is instantaneous. Digital payment became popular in China in
2015 and he has been using it for business since then. The big players in this
sector are Alipay and WeChat pay. He uses digital platforms for all aspects of
his business including ordering, delivery and logistics. Logistics companies
have their apps for easy transaction and fraud protection. The implementation
of these ideas in the ethno cultural market in Canada will strengthen the
economy and create job opportunities along the value chain that are consistent
with the 21st century.
Digital payment and electronic agriculture will reduce
the power of middlemen and encourage young people to consider agricultural
production and marketing as viable entrepreneurial activities. Furthermore, digital
payment will serve as an incentive for the development of community shared
agriculture (CSA). A CSA is an arrangement that allows community members and
farmers to share the risk of agricultural production.
CSA explained
CSA is an alternative agriculture that enhances the
collaboration of farmers and consumers. Consumers buy shares from the farmer
and the farmer supplies a pre-selected basket of goods based on what is
available during the season and produced by the farmer or a group of farmers.
To have a better understanding, let’s use the illustration below:
A farming couple in southwestern Ontario bought a 95
acres for vegetables and livestock production in 2009 and the financing of the farm is through CSA with
200 members. This farm has three full time staff and volunteers. The
arrangement gives the farmers a reliable stream of income and ability to plan
what to grow. The shareholders (subscribers) are updated about the activities
on the farm and can contribute their time on the farm in-lieu of specified
financial contribution. During the harvest period the shareholders can harvest
the produce themselves, pick up their basket of goods at the farm gate or
collect at delivery centers in selected towns or cities such as Guelph, London
or Cambridge. The couple in this case study has an income of approximately
50,000CAD/annum. Labour is a huge part of the production, because it’s organic,
so there is a need for ecological loving consumers to volunteer their time –
gardening is therapeutic.
Shareholders of this CSA pay $575 CAD for a 20 week
share in the summer. And the basket delivered to consumers is a function of
what is available. This farm has successfully grown culturally appropriate
vegetables such as Asian greens, spinach and tomatoes and they keep exploring
new crops based on shareholders’ preferences. They produce 1200 to 1800 pounds
of tomatoes from the greenhouse - no outdoor production of tomatoes. Although,
there are capital expenses such as procurement of a tractor and coupled
implements, the CSA is bio-dynamic – the farm is its own ecosystem. The
planting calendar and land preparation is nature preserving. The sheep on the
farm are grass-fed which translates to healthy livestock, no deworming and more
omega-3 in the meat produced. Overall, the young owners of the CSA want to
continue growing foods and their shareholders are happy with their customer
relationship management.
Learning from China
Alternative agriculture, including CSA will benefit
from digital wallet (and or mobile pay) by learning from platforms developed by
Tencent
(WeChat pay) and Alibaba
(Alipay). Alibaba has gone a step further with it’s Hema Stores. Shopping
behavior is changing as technology platforms suitable for online ordering
continue to promote convenience in our global village. In China, the trend is instantaneous
shopping based on a social media interaction linked to direct ordering from the
producer. Canada has recently stepped up to this reality. For example, a
collaboration between Metrolinx and Loblaws will allow commuters to order their
groceries online and pick their bag on their way home in any of the few
stations where the service is available this spring. I hope we will have a wallet
less ethnocultural market in the near future.
The beginning of the future
The future of sustainable agriculture is guaranteed
when information technology is blended with agriculture production, preferably
organic. Crowdfunding is now used to link middle class people who are
interested in farming but don’t have the time and access to farm land. With crowdfunding,
ThriveAgric and FarmCrowdy, co-farmers
can buy a maize or any other produce farm in a remote village in Nigeria in a structure
that is beneficial to the co-farmers, the tech startup and the local farmers. And very soon crypto-labelling will reduce the asymmetries and opacity in the halal,
kosher, organic and alternative agriculture markets.
In a nutshell, digital payment, crowdfunding and other
forms of e-agriculture will enhance production via market gardening (growing
crops for the alternative market) and marketing through farmers’ markets, farm
gate sales, self-harvests by consumers, buying groups, home delivery, and
community shared agriculture.
Bamidele
Adekunle, ECVOntario, SEDRD, University of Guelph