Dimitra Cointelegraph Agriculture – Blockchain has been recognized for its potential to transform finance and other industries that rely on data, but what happens when innovation meets the world’s oldest industry – agriculture? It turns out that blockchain has a lot to offer to the food and agriculture sectors. Especially when merged with other innovative technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), satellites and the Internet of Things (IoT).

The agriculture sector can join the tech revolution to upgrade every aspect that has to do with transaction and data. For example, blockchain could streamline processes related to the supply chain by increasing traceability and bringing automation to the table.

A report from InsightAce Analytics found that blockchain in the agriculture and food supply chain is a market valued at over $280 million as of 2022. And will grow to over $7 billion by 2031. Demonstrating a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 43.76% during that period.

How can blockchain help agriculture businesses? – Dimitra Cointelegraph Agriculture

Thanks to its unique architecture that involves decentralization, blockchain ensures the highest possible degree of transparency and traceability, which are key elements in the agriculture sector. Decentralized networks enable participants, including farmers, producers, retailers and exporters, to monitor and address major challenges showing up in the supply chain. Eventually, blockchain records can be used for analysis purposes to improve various aspects in the supply chain.

The adoption of blockchain in agriculture can also help regulatory compliance and reporting. By ensuring the provision of accurate, up-to-date, tamper-proof data, stakeholders can make better-informed decisions and implement proper corporate governance. Decentralized networks also simplify the distribution of certification data among relevant parties.

Besides transparency, blockchain can facilitate other advancements in the agricultural sector. For instance, it can enable better management of land rights, more efficient food safety tracking, and enhanced traceability of inputs like seeds and fertilizers. Dimitra Cointelegraph Agriculture

dimitra.io and cointelegraph

Dimitra KEPM Projects — Dimitra Incorporated, a global Agtech company on a mission to make its technology available to farmers globally, is working with KEPM Projects in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to fill the gap between local farmers, associations, and Emirate authorities.

Equally important, Dimitra and KEPM Projects will help to strengthen the UAE’s agriculture and food security efforts. Furthermore, this collaboration will help drive sustainable agriculture practices. Additionally, it will pave the way for a prosperous future for farmers and communities in the region.

To illustrate, KEPM Projects brings years of project management, delivery experience, and consulting in the agri-industrial business sector. In addition, their expertise in agtech and agribusiness complements Dimitra’s innovative solutions and services. What’s more, this enables both companies to provide even better support to farmers in the UAE.

Leaders at the Forefront of Innovation

Moreover, Dimitra and KEPM Projects will accelerate the adoption rate of technology in the Emirates agricultural sector, allowing the UAE to lead at the forefront of agricultural innovation. Furthermore, their main objectives to achieve this is the following:

• Improve food security and sustainability in the region
• Improve farmers’ access to innovative technology
• Support digital the transformation in the UAE’s agriculture industry with innovative solutions and services
• Accelerate the adoption of sustainable farming practices
• Enhance crop yields and quality for farmers

The MENA Regional Director, Eng. Maged Elmontaser, states, ”Dimitra and KEPM Projects have a strategic partnership committed to the promise of faster and smarter decision-making. We’ll explore how to unlock the next wave of future value for farmers, corporations, associations, and governments in the Emirates. With Dimitra’s and KEPM Projects combined innovative technologies and knowledge, we will provide agribusiness with the most innovative, sustainable, and cost-effective solutions.“

Dimitra Sales Partner for the UAE, Eng. Mohamed Alawad, says, ”We believe this partnership will enable us to leverage our respective strengths and expertise to create even more value for our customers and partners. Working together, we can drive innovation and progress in the AgriTech industry and help farmers thrive in a changing world.”

Eng. Mulhim Eltayeb, CEO of KEPM Projects, says, “Our partnership with Dimitra represents a significant milestone in our mission to bring comprehensive and sustainable cutting-edge AgTech solutions to farmers in the UAE. Together, we can leverage our expertise to help drive innovation and growth in the agribusiness sector both locally and regionally.”

Dimitra AI – Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the agriculture market is projected to grow from $1.7 billion in 2023 to $4.7 billion by 2028.

Unfortunately, smallholder farmers, who produce nearly one-third of the world’s food, rarely benefit from these growing markets. Moreover, they are often the last to see progress coming from advanced technology like AI.

Working on the cutting edge of technological advancements, Dimitra’s agricultural application stack interweaves elements of AI and Machine Learning (ML) to support farmers across the globe and put next-generation tools into their hands.

While these applications meet varying and diverse needs with many different technologies, a critical component of this new green revolution is AI.

But how does it all work?

What does the experience look like for a farmer utilizing Dimitra applications to improve crop yields, manage livestock or battle the pox of global deforestation?

Let’s explore three key examples.

Crop Performance – Dimitra AI

On-the-ground data is essential to making real improvements in crop performance.

Satellite-based spectral and radar imagery analysis pairs with soil, weather, planting, and other agricultural data to deliver farmers AI-based recommendations that can have a significant impact on crop yields and overall productivity.

So, what does all this look like in a real-life use case? Let’s take a trip to South America.

In Bolivia, quinoa is a high-value crop. In 2021 alone, the U.S. spent nearly $25 million on the Bolivian superfood.

Even with all this capital flowing in, smallholder farmers responsible for quinoa production face challenges from low-tech processes, soil degradation, and pest issues. AI and ML models built for these Bolivian farmers utilize advanced weather monitoring alongside satellite imagery. This is to help mitigate crop failure and better predict future performance.

AI also helps battle the scourge of productivity in the area — pests.

Sensors and AI tools help farmers monitor pest threshold levels to enable them to quickly enact countermeasures and keep fields safe.

Through the Connected Farmer Platform, farmers like those in Bolivia can use AI tech to analyze data from all kinds of sources efficiently:

• Inputs
• Satellite imagery
• Value chain partners
• Internet of things (IoT) devices

The platform provides insights and recommendations to farmers that result in improved crop yields and, in turn, overall profits. Moreover, it connects national agricultural data to help governments generate reports and organize local agricultural value chains.

In fact, this results in improved traceability and useful data sets that help develop better public policies that increase GDP.

Animal Productivity

Family farmers rearing and caring for livestock across the world are facing competitive markets, inefficient herd management systems, and breeding practices that lag well behind modern standards.

When we talk about leveraging AI and ML to improve livestock performance, it directly translates to giving these farmers a data-driven advantage in their everyday decision-making.

Dimitra’s Livestock Guru puts those practical AI-based tools right into their hands.

Many environmental, management, and hereditary factors affect the performance of cattle. Moreover, having a comprehensive vantage point based on ML and statistical analysis results in better predictions, performance, and productivity across many different areas:

• Cost optimization
• Pasture management
• Genetic selection
• Farm performance

Nutrition, weather, water, disease, temperature, etc., all affect the lifecycle of the animals.

By categorizing livestock into groups using these conditions, Livestock Guru helps farmers make better-informed decisions based on data-driven predictions. This influences areas like farm management, animal management, and breeding.

The result? More efficient livestock practices for those who need them most and higher quality products.

Deforestation

Between 2015 and 2020, the rate of global deforestation fell from 16 million hectares per year to 10 million.

Thanks in part to changing perceptions toward global conservation and drives to enact regulation, we’re now in the third decade of deforestation decline. Far from over, though, the problem we face now is getting a clear picture of deforestation issues and effective methods to enforce regulations.

Dimitra’s Deforestation Compliance Module uses satellite imagery to differentiate between trees, crops, forested areas, and clear-cut sections to do precisely that.

ML models leverage this data to understand what’s happening on the ground without ever touching the soil. To intelligently identify the deforested areas in a sea of green, the module uses AI to determine texture, color, reflectivity, and much more.

This allows both farmers and traders to offer full transparency in their supply chain. Additionally, it allows them to prove with data-backed insights their compliance with deforestation regulations.

GPS track and trace is required to prove compliance in some global markets, like the European Union.

Connecting Everything to DMTR

While powerful AI technology delivers insights to farmers, it’s only a glimpse into the full Dimitra agricultural tech stack.

Underneath it all is an optimized blockchain architecture that powers a global marketplace, financial services, and distributed analytics. So how do these practical AI-powered platforms connect to the Dimitra Token (DMTR)?

Here are three examples:

• Crop performance — this feature of the Connected Farmer Platform is available to license with payments in DMTR. The platform locks farmer rewards from licensing and use for a fixed period of time prior to releasing back to the cooperative.
• Animal productivity — paying licensing fees in DMTR is the only way this module interacts with the token.
• Deforestation — every deforestation certification generates revenue. The platform then uses the balance to pay filing fees, buyback tokens, or burn tokens.

AI Technology Powers the Future of Agriculture

Whether it’s tracking drone data or soil sensor activity, AI is a critical component of the next generation of agricultural products. Dimitra is taking those tools, combining them with other advanced technologies, and providing them to those who need them most.

As the world evolves, Dimitra is committed to developing an all-in-one agricultural platform that caters to farmers across the globe.

This platform utilizes AI and ML tech across the stack to deliver insights that offer real-world results. That means better crop productivity, better livestock management, and a clearer picture of global deforestation.

Dimitra Reduce Inequality – One of the most definitive issues of human history is inequality. Although several forms of inequality have declined, income inequality is perhaps the most common and concerning form today.

According to the 2022 World Inequality Report, 10% of the world’s population earns more than 52% of global income, while the poorest 50% of the population receives only 8%.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, global income inequality increased for the first time in decades. Insufficient recovery in today’s market continues to widen the disparity, and income inequality continues to rise significantly between countries.

One of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is to reduce inequality significantly by 2030.

At Dimitra, we’re working within and between nations to mitigate income inequality, especially among the world’s most important laborers: farmers.

Reduce Inequality SDG 10 – Dimitra Reduce Inequality

“Reduce inequalities within and among countries.”

While income inequality is stabilizing between countries, it’s growing worse within countries. SDG #10 calls for nations to “reduce inequalities in income as well as those based on age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion or economic or other statuses within a country.”

How Does Inequality Affect Agriculture?

Inequalities in agriculture still exist today, some of which date back thousands of years. Among smallholder farms that support their immediate families and communities, wealth inequality remains a top concern. Land ownership has also been a constant struggle in the fight for farmers’ rights to a livable income.

Despite historically groundbreaking equal rights movements around the world, gender inequalities still exist in professional fields today — and the farming industry is no exception. Women in agriculture still face serious barriers to land ownership. In fact, less than 20% of landholders are women. Of that amount, even fewer have land ownership — or the ability to control, utilize, and manage owned land freely without oppression.

Solutions to Farming Inequality

What are agricultural innovators and national governments to do in the face of farming inequality? As a leading agricultural technology company focused on farmer success, we at Dimitra know there’s no single solution.

Section 10.b in SDG #10 to Reduce Inequality lists a target: “Encourage official development assistance and financial flows, including foreign direct investment, to States where the need is greatest, in particular, least developed countries, African countries, small island developing States and landlocked developing countries, in accordance with their national plans and programmes.”

This effort is one Dimitra strongly aligns with. Direct investment is one thing. Working in accordance with national plans is another, and it’s vital if farmers are to be equipped with the resources, support, and knowledge they need to achieve equal access to opportunities within their country.

To enable farmers to operate sustainably and earn a steady income, countries can work to ensure equal opportunities that reduce inequalities. Agricultural companies and cooperatives can advocate to override discriminatory laws and policies in the industry. Furthermore, agricultural companies can prioritize equal opportunity employment, fair wages, and ethical working conditions in every aspect of the operation.

Empowering Farmers With Accessible AgTech: Dimitra’s Mission

Whether it be gaining access to basic farm goods and services, learning to implement more sustainable farming practices, or diversifying the opportunities of crop trade, farmers benefit from technology. And it’s possible to make this reality more accessible for all.

At Dimitra, we work with smallholder farms around the world to ensure fair, advanced availability of supportive AgTech platforms. Our Connected Farmer App allows farmers to track finances, manage crops, access weather predictions, and stay in compliance with local government regulations. Although this type of technology was only available to large-scale farmers in the past, we place it in farmers’ hands — even those in the most rural locations.

Dimitra’s CEO, Jon Trask, proclaims: “Every smallholder farmer, regardless of economic status, should be able to benefit from simple, beautiful, and useful technology… because when farmers thrive, economies thrive.”

With Dimitra, farms can effectively increase yield, reduce costs, and mitigate risks throughout every season. It’s our mission to make the equality gap smaller, one farmer at a time.

📢Our CEO Jon Trask will be joining Cointelegraph for an AMA to talk about all things Agtech!

➡️Those interested can join the AgTech conversation on Cointelegraph’s Youtube channel on March 22, 2:00 pm UTC.

Dimitra World Water Day 2023 is a day of awareness around the vital role water plays in the world. The observance was initiated by the United Nations in 1993. Exhibits are hosted in various locations, headquarters, and embassies worldwide to give water — and its life-sustaining role — center stage.

World Water Day Theme

“Water affects everyone, so we need everyone to take action.”

World Water Day has a different theme each year, and the 2023 theme is “Accelerating Change,” with a focus on the sanitation crisis.

There are a couple of reasons this year’s theme on sanitation is important:

• Dysfunction throughout the water cycle undermines movement on all important global issues, from health to hunger, gender equality to jobs, education to industry, and disasters to peace.
• Almost half of the global population — 3.6 billion people — lack safe sanitation. (WHO/UNICEF 2021)

Water conservation efforts are part of the messaging around World Water Day and advanced in many arenas through an interplay between sustainable development and technology.

Here is an overview of some of the initiatives that embody the ethos and goals of World Water Day.

Smarter Farming for Rice Paddies

Dimitra World Water Day – In the past few years, a novel tactic in rice farming has come into play, with the goal of maximizing the use of valuable water. This polyculture practice is an integration of aquaculture and agriculture, growing rice in paddies alongside fish. In fact, rice-fish farming is an environmentally preferable approach and one that can improve in precision with the aid of agricultural technology.

IoT Sensors to Reduce Overwatering

Overwatering crops is an avoidable waste now that IoT sensors and other remote monitoring technologies exist for farmers. Knowing when and when not to water has often been a guessing game for smallholder farmers around the world who don’t have intricate infrastructure and connectivity.

At Dimitra, this is a cause we’ve taken up with great passion. Farmers using sensors can log in to the Dimitra App to see the soil reports. They then make a data-based decision on whether watering is necessary.

Save Water, Save the Planet – Dimitra World Water Day

The long story short of water conservation is that every life on earth depends on it. Moreover, World Water Day is a great opportunity to stop and remember how valuable each drop is. No one is more aware of this than farmers.

As a farmer-founded company, Dimitra won’t stop until every farmer in the world has better tools, better insights, and better implementation to protect their farm… which is, to protect the earth.

Dimitra Cointelegraph AMA – With AgTech, farmers have the ability to apply sensors, drones, GIS, farm-management software, robotics, machine learning and blockchain to their day-to-day work, giving them full control over their farms. Precision agriculture methods enable them to make better decisions and reduce costs.

Yet not everyone embraces these tools. According to McKinsey, only 39% farmers use farm-management software and 18% take advantage of, or plan to use, precision agriculture with the lowest adoption rates in Asia. Barriers to mass adoption include high AgTech costs, lack of personalized, quality services and logistical issues.

AgTech startups endeavor to fill the gap by making AgTech more approachable and attractive for investment. They came to investors’ attention in 2020 in the immediate aftermath of a pandemic that disrupted supply chains around the world, raising $6.2 billion. Though numbers have since dropped by nearly a third, ongoing global conflicts, consequences of climate change and goals of multiple governments to transition to the green economies keep AgTech in the spotlight.

Smart farming solutions

Dimitra Cointelegraph AMA – One of the companies transforming the agriculture sector is Dimitra, a global blockchain-based AgTech company with a mission to empower farmers around the world. Dimitra provides a data-driven approach to agriculture. Giving farmers full control over their crops and livestock by combining GIS, IoT, AI, machine learning and blockchain.

In addition to farmers and farming cooperatives, Dimitra works with governments, agricultural corporations, NGOs and for-profit organizations. They have partners in 68 countries and over 100,000 users worldwide. Dimitra’s projects, which include data management platforms, customized agricultural solutions, education and incubator programs. Make trading and logistics fast and transparent for all parties involved, maintain high-quality standards. And support every participant in the AgTech ecosystem.

With the Dimitra token, DMTR, farmers will have access to a marketplace in Q3, 2023 where they can not only buy and sell their own goods. But also purchase licenses, equipment and insurance. People not directly involved in agriculture or AgTech can also use DMTR to make a real difference. Supporting individual farms and projects around the world and directly helping farming families and communities.

AMA with Dimitra on the application of blockchain and machine learning in agriculture

Together with Jon Trask, CEO of Dimitra, Cointelegraph will dive into AgTech on:

• How AgTech challenges differ across geographies.
• How technologies like blockchain and AI help farmers with their day-to-day operations.
• Major ecological problems for the agricultural sector and technological solutions to address them.
• Dimitra’s projects, tokenomics, collaborations and special programs where everyone can get involved.

Jon Trask is the founder and CEO of Dimitra Inc. He has an impressive background in developing enterprise software solutions for the supply chain. Finance and agriculture sectors, and has been a recognized expert in the blockchain industry since 2017.

Those interested can join the AgTech conversation and ask questions live on Cointelegraph’s Youtube channel on March 22, 2:00 pm UTC.

Dimitra Day of Forests – March 21st is the International Day of Forests. It’s a good time to consider the critical importance of the rich, vibrant, and life-sustaining biodiversity that can be found in forests across the globe.

The International Day of Forests was established in 2012 by the United Nations General Assembly. The purpose of the day is to draw attention to the devastating effects of deforestation and to inspire communities across the world to participate in efforts of all scales to preserve our forests.

While more nations, organizations, and individuals have taken action on deforestation in recent years, much remains to be done. Keep reading to learn about the current state of deforestation and why forests are an important part of the solution to climate change.

Deforestation Statistics

Each year, approximately 10 million hectares of forests are lost as a result of deforestation. 10 million sounds like a lot — and it is — but let us put it into perspective for you. That’s the same size as the entire country of Iceland.

Deforestation isn’t the only cause of forest loss. Damage from insects is also responsible for the annual destruction of approximately 35 million hectares of forests.

The world cannot sustain this level of mass deforestation. If we continue on our current path, we will have only 10% of our forests remaining by 2030. That’s a short seven years from where we currently are.

A great deal of deforestation is a result of global demand for food. Forests are clear-cut and replaced with fields for cattle, palm oil, cocoa, and soybean farming. While deforestation poses a serious threat to our world, so does food shortage. Furthermore, we must develop solutions that address the needs of both.

Why are forests important? – Dimitra Day of Forests

The health of forests represents a critical vital sign of the health of our planet. These varied and adaptable ecosystems are essential resources that support the food, energy, and habitat needs of people across the world. They are responsible for cleaning the air, purifying the water, and maintaining the delicate balance of the ecosystems that sustain us.

The importance of forests goes beyond what we can extract from them, however. They are salient spaces that facilitate life for millions of species and provide endless opportunities for cultural enrichment.

The sustainable management of forests is crucial in the fight against the climate crisis. Without healthy, abundant forests, we risk the worst-case scenario and make it even more difficult to face the challenges that lay ahead.

Forests are instrumental in alleviating poverty as well as countless other necessary economic, social, public health, and ecological improvement objectives. When we protect forests, we protect the world and everyone in it.

Dimitra Technology and Deforestation

At Dimitra, the driving force behind our collective vision is a more sustainable future. The connection between deforestation and food insecurity is undeniable. Moreover, our technology is designed to support efforts to limit damaging impacts.

Our Deforestation Certification Module is an upgrade to the Connected Farmer and Livestock Guru platforms. It is designed to make the traditionally complex and expensive deforestation evaluation process more accessible.

We’ve worked hard to make it even more beneficial for producers and traders to combat the climate crisis by allowing them to prove their goods are unrelated to deforestation.

Dimitra’s Deforestation Certification helps farmers, traders, operators, and consumer packaged goods companies ensure every shipment is compliant and meets regulatory demands. Using an innovative combination of satellite analysis, artificial intelligence, blockchain, and mobile technology, operators can detect deforestation, prove compliance, and reduce the risk of fraud.

Dimitra is proud to be a leader in agriculture technology solutions for critical issues such as deforestation. To learn more about how our technology supports the fight against climate change, visit https://dimitra.io/.

DMTR Token – With an estimated value of over $8.5 trillion, the agri-food industry is a space brimming with advances and technological evolution. Dimitra’s Connected Farmer platform democratizes access to farming technology to farmers in need globally.

Solok Radjo is a Cooperative benefitting from Dimitra’s Connected Farmer platform. The cooperative is based in West Sumatra, Indonesia. The agreement forged with Dimitra is catalyzing progress in Solok’s coffee market, especially in high-opportunity areas, including premium export markets.

This is all made possible because of the very strategic way that Dimitra’s business model was developed. And it all begins with the blockchain.

Blockchain, Utility Tokens, and Real-World value – DMTR Token

Blockchain technology may be the most valuable innovation since the inception of the internet. Tokens are a significant reason for this value, especially utility tokens. Utility tokens can create real-world value, a value not just relegated to digital exchanges.

Much of the value of a utility token is wrapped up in the success of a related project. In fact, this is why the Dimitra story is a compelling one.

The power of using blockchain technology helps:

• More farms and cooperatives use Dimitra’s technology
• The data repository grows
• That data feeds into (and grows) artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) functionalities
• The value to the end user (the farmer) in terms of reliable, actionable data comes to exceed the initial financial investment
• Farmers leverage services to expand adoption of additional financial services

Solok Radjo Cooperative is an illustration of even more value: cooperative leaders used tokens to buy their licensing. Over time, they will give tokens to the farmers in their cooperative, who can then use those to buy advanced features in the platform.

Dimitra’s Impact on the Coffee Ecosystem

Dimitra aims to serve coffee cooperatives exceptionally well, but we have additional ambitions.

Not only do we aim to partner with 1,000 cooperatives, but we also want to see universities (like Andalas University), soil suppliers, seed suppliers, and other key players in coffee come into our ecosystem.

By doing this, the value for all will compound exponentially, bringing a driving force for positive change into local communities around the world.

Driving Utility as We Grow

The ecosystem strategy described above is a strategy we’re passionate about, because we know it will work to improve the lives and businesses of the farmers we want to help.

For example, the Solok Radjo Cooperative is a great illustration that showcases the effectiveness of this approach. Farmers invest and should be able to clearly see how they will get a return on that investment.

Added Perks and Opportunities – DMTR Token

We have just launched a sponsorship program where anyone anywhere in the world can invest and provide licenses for farmers.

Then there’s this added perk: as farmers submit the data we need to enrich the community, they will be building a body of data that has a monetary value to the ecosystem. They can capitalize on that as we sell aggregated data on the Ocean Protocol.

DMTR: Reimagining the Possibilities

As a team, we recognize that we stand on the threshold of massive opportunities. Our sophisticated software and systems put game-changing tools into the hands of people who run the 570 million small farms around the world.

We are reimagining what’s possible, leveraging the power of emerging technology to reshape the future for worthy farmers around the world. And we won’t stop until every single one has gotten a shot to succeed.