Blockchain Tracing: The Potential For Transparency and Accountability

For quite some time now, blockchain and its innovative potential has been discussed across multiple fields as a disruptive force for security, transparency and increasing efficiency. Going beyond the buzzword...the question becomes: What can the technology do and why does it matter for the cannabis industry?

If you’re willing to get into the weeds with us on this, you’ll soon discover that many cannabis businesses have started to educate themselves on and even embrace the possibilities offered by solutions built on blockchain. You may be asking yourselves however: “So..what exactly is blockchain?” 

As Whitehat Security explains: 

“The simplest way to think of blockchain is as a large distributed ledger of sorts that stores records of transactions. This “ledger” is replicated hundreds of times throughout the public network so it is available to everyone. Every time a transaction occurs, it is updated in ALL of these replicated ledgers, so everyone can see it.”

When we think about cannabis supply chains (especially regarding risk management), payment systems, and the tracking and tracing of transactions use cases slowly begin to blossom.

With all this innovation however, much like the cannabis market itself, blockchain is very much in a state of maturation and emergence. It’s dealt with some challenges, but in doing so is more poised than ever to potentially revolutionize the way things are done both now and especially in the future. 

To better understand where the potential for collaboration exists, let’s use an example.

Seeking to establish increased levels of accountability and transparency within the CBD industry in the EU, CAN (the Cannabinoid Association of the Netherlands) constituting a consortium of Dutch cannabidiol (CBD) producers recently launched CanCheck.org: A free, blockchain-based online CBD search tool that makes it possible for consumers to trace their CBD products at every point along the supply chain. 

The tool provides an example of best practice, offering a use-case for how a world-leading CBD regulatory environment can be built within the UK for the purposes of consumer protection as well as offering support for small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs). Any CBD product bearing the CAN Quality Mark can be traced with its contents verified using the tool. In addition, the system contains consistent and clear product composition analysis conducted by accredited laboratories guaranteeing: 

? Accurate levels of CBD, CBA-A, THC (<0.05%) and THC-A (<0.05%)

? The absence of contaminants

? A full spectrum composition

The CAN Quality Mark guarantees correct product labelling, adherence to stringent quality requirements for EU approved hemp varieties. 

The European Industrial Hemp Association (EIHA) which serves as Europe’s foremost coalition of the industrial hemp-processing industry, recently announced plans to invest €3.5m in CBD and THC testing. This comes on the heels of HempFlax, Europe’s largest producer of industrial hemp and a CAN founding member becoming the first to have CAN-certified products on shelves. Acting as the white label supplier to one of the UK’s best-selling CBD brands Jacob Hooy, the CBD oil and capsules on offer from HempFlax represent a sizable portion of the UK CBD market.

In terms of scoping and drawing a conclusion regarding the future of cannabis and blockchain --- Larry Levy, CEO and Co-Founder of Lucid Green recently spoke to Jolene Hansen from the Cannabis Business Times and provided, among other interesting bits of info, the following reflection:

“Many of the cannatech solutions that are out there have literally grown up out of people’s basements because the big software companies didn’t want to touch a weed company.” He believes that consolidation and normalization will bring blockchain leaders into the cannabis industry. “That’s how the industry is going to grow up,” he says.

Perry agrees that mainstream blockchain platforms will enter the cannabis industry soon. “It likely will become much more enticing both to big technology as well as the industry itself,” he says. “Once one of those big companies gets a product out there, there will likely be a snowball effect. I really think it is the future of the industry from at least the supply chain and the tracking aspect.”

To find out where the buzz is, make sure to check out The Canabee for more content.