The webinar organized by Espaitec and Diputació has emphasized implementing technologies in the primary sector in a simple and friendly way with the territory so that they are effective.
Almost a hundred people registered for the online seminar “Traceability in the primary sector”, an event organized by Espaitec, Scientific and Technological Park of the Universitat Jaume I and Castelló Provincial Council within the business innovation program Castellón Global Program.
The webinar had the participation of David Torres, general director of Rural Development of the Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Climate Emergency and Ecological Transition of the Valencian generalitat, who has highlighted that the administration must have its ears wide open to this type of technologies to innovate in such a relevant sector in the Valencian Community.
Torres has shared some of the difficulties that the administration faces in implementing these technologies in a traditional and familiar sector, among which he has highlighted "the slow pace of the administration in the face of this type of digital transformations and the importance of starting to fertilize the agricultural and livestock sector so that the penetration of these technologies is understood, simple and friendly to the territory. "It is a very big but necessary challenge that the sector must consider in the medium term," she stated. During his speech he also explained some of the projects developed by the Generalitat such as "Molt de Gust", the brand of organic products of the Valencian Community.
Lledo Novo, technical manager of Department of Rural Development of the Provincial Council of Castelló, has endorsed the difficulties mentioned by the Generalitat, and has highlighted the work of the provincial administration to adapt to the needs of local producers, without forgetting that they must pivot their management towards new models where technologies have more prominence. "From the Provincial Council we would like to promote the implementation of technologies such as blockchain to provide agility and transparency, but listening to companies and producers, we find other priorities," he assured. He has also explained the evolution of the “Castelló Ruta de Sabor” program, where a reverse traceability system has been implemented.
From the University of Granada Paco Luis Benitez, a consultant in governance and management of digital change for the development of intelligent environments, has given an overview of blockchain applied to the transformation of territories, in which he highlighted that the technology is still in an incipient phase that, without However, it is already crucial when it comes to guaranteeing transparency in all areas of economic activity. «The use of blockchain is associated with the emergence of a set of solutions that can drastically change the way we manage the environment. A decentralized and transparent governance based on the intelligent organization of all the agents involved in the chain, heading towards a collaborative and linear management system. This implies a change in culture and perception, both for companies and public administration, where unlearning to learn new processes. This is one of the main challenges we encounter when starting the digital transformation of the sector," he assured.
Benítez has also highlighted that technologies such as big data They have to lead to prescriptive models that indicate what to do with the data, hence the importance of certifying the data at source. "Here the blockchain plays an important role again, transforming the Internet thanks to its ability to give value to certain information around us, blockchain understood as a premise to guarantee the added value of the information that is generated online," he explained.
The webinar ended with two success stories, Valencian companies that are already applying all types of technologies in the primary sector. From Vinaròs Ivan Forner has presented Aviar Technological, a firm that develops electronic systems and industrial programming for poultry farms that has several patents. During his speech, Forner highlighted the ability of technology to improve processes and highlighted the importance of data to make quick decisions in crisis situations. In his speech, some of the developments carried out specialized in biosafety for the poultry sector were presented.
Pablo Rodrigo has presented traceable, a company from Valencia that develops food traceability from the field to the point of sale. Through control of the entire chain, errors in the quality system are avoided, which can lead to cost savings of between 35% and 50%. Rodrigo has emphasized a new business model where the cost-value paradigm has changed towards risk competitiveness. Here, ensuring resilience in supply chains is crucial, hence the importance of collecting data to improve decision making and predictions. Finally, he has highlighted transparency as a purchasing lever. When it comes to convincing and building customer loyalty, the trust generated by blockchain can increase sales between 1% and 3%.