IT Consulting to Optimize the TCO of Blockchain-Based Agricultural Product Marketplace
About Our Customer
The Customer is a Singapore-based wholesaler focused on raw and processed agricultural products. The company continuously expands its product range and maintains a quality-first approach to ensure the authenticity and safety of its products.
Blockchain Competencies Were Needed to Build an Innovative Marketplace
The Customer wanted to unlock a new revenue stream by launching a brand-new agricultural product marketplace. The solution was aimed to provide farmers, processors, wholesalers, retailers, and consumers with a convenient digital environment to sell and purchase agricultural commodities and finished goods, including regulated ones. Driven by the need to ensure product authenticity and supply chain transparency, the company decided to build the marketplace on blockchain. Immutable blockchain-based recordkeeping would help verify the origin and quality of the supplied products, streamlining supply chain control and resolution of potential claims.
The Customer also wanted to introduce a blockchain-based product traceability app for non-authorized marketplace users. Using the app, shoppers would be able to scan a QR code on the product package and instantly access the product provenance data and testing documentation stored in the blockchain.
Before starting the project, the Customer wanted to ensure the initiative's technical and economic feasibility. Due to the lack of relevant in-house competencies, the company was searching for an experienced blockchain consulting service provider to assist in the planning and design of its non-standard marketplace solution.
Designing a Blockchain-Based Agricultural Marketplace
Owing to ScienceSoft’s expertise in decentralized marketplace development and practical experience with blockchain for the food supply chain, the Customer trusted our team to conceptualize the innovative solution and create a roadmap to its implementation.
ScienceSoft’s blockchain consultants analyzed the Customer’s needs and studied the target audience to engineer the requirements for the marketplace. Next, they created a comprehensive software feature map for various user roles: farmers, processors, packaging companies, carriers, buyers, and more. ScienceSoft’s experts divided the features into several categories according to their expected value and prioritized the functionality for implementation.
The team went on to design role-specific user interfaces. ScienceSoft’s experts prepared high-fidelity wireframes for the core farmer- and consumer-facing pages like an inventory overview page, a criteria-based product search page, and more. The Customer also received UX/UI mockups and a UI kit reflecting the proper visual style for the marketplace to communicate brand values.
Lastly, the team introduced the technical design of the marketplace. ScienceSoft’s experts proposed several architecture options for the software, each with its tech stack and integrations with the required blockchain networks and third-party services. Our consultants delivered a step-by-step implementation plan for each option, including the team composition and cost and time estimates. In addition, ScienceSoft assessed the economic feasibility of different approaches and provided expert advice on the optimal way to build the marketplace given the Customer’s budget restrictions.
ScienceSoft’s team also helped the Customer prepare a white paper for investors and legal authorities, describing how the blockchain-based marketplace operates and traces the regulated agricultural commodities.
Foundation for Fast Development and Cost Optimization
In only 4 weeks, the Customer got a comprehensive roadmap to the blockchain-based agricultural marketplace development, including the solution’s technical design options and a detailed project plan. Thanks to ScienceSoft’s assistance with prioritizing the software features for implementation, the Customer got the opportunity to reduce the platform’s time-to-market and speed up payback. Our expert advice on the optimal ways to employ blockchain for food traceability and provenance helped the company reveal the cost optimization opportunities and ensure high solution value for end users.
Technologies and Tools
Polygon Edge, zkBNB, Golang, Magento (Adobe Commerce), PHP, React.js, TypeScript, Nginx, Next.js, PostgreSQL, Jenkins.
