Cases & Voices

Family farming forms the basis of food security in Latin America, but faces persistent challenges in terms of transparency, traceability and access to higher-value markets. Smart Agro RAF LATAM is a regional collaborative initiative which, supported by the BELLA II Early Adopters Blockchain programme – run between September and December 2025 – demonstrates how the advanced digital infrastructure of RedCLARA and the national research and education networks (NRENs) that comprise it enables innovative solutions with a direct impact on rural communities.

More than 60 million people in Latin America and the Caribbean live on rural properties, which account for 80% of properties in the region. According to Smart Agro RAF LATAM studies, “in Colombia, 74% of agricultural units fall under the concept of Peasant, Family and Community Agriculture (ACFC). In Brazil, family farming accounts for 77% of rural holdings and forms the economic basis of 90% of municipalities with up to 20,000 inhabitants.” There is no need to delve deeper into these figures to understand that, from Mexico to Patagonia, family farming is crucial for societies and economies. This is why food security becomes so vital.

But what do we mean when we say “food security”? According to the World Bank: “Food security is achieved when all people have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food at all times to meet their nutritional needs and lead an active and healthy life.”

Raising the profile and value of family farming

It goes without saying: in Latin America, millions of small-scale producers account for a large part of food production. However, the lack of reliable traceability and certification systems limits their access to competitive markets and reduces the added value of their products. This gap affects producers, consumers and the institutions that require guarantees of origin, quality and, of course, sustainability within agri-food chains.

To overcome this challenge, Smart Agro RAF LATAM proposes a blockchain-based platform that enables the recording and verification of every stage of the production process, through the issuance of digital assets (tokens) representing agricultural products or certifications.

The solution is built on the following pillars:

• Smart contracts that automate traceability.
• Verifiable digital credentials for producers.
• Accessible interfaces that reduce technological complexity.
• Modular architecture that facilitates regional scalability. 

The combination of these pillars results in greater transparency, improved market positioning and digital empowerment for producers.

Why did the members of Smart Agro RAF LATAM decide to apply for the blockchain testbed through BELLAII’s Early Adopters Programme? The answer is provided by the project leader, Rodrigo Mansilha, Prof. Dr. and Coordinator of Research, Developent and Innovation in Information Technology and Artificial Intelligence at the Federal University of Pampa: “We developed a solution aimed at the Brazilian public. We saw the call for proposals as an opportunity to validate our idea (both in terms of users’ problems and our proposal to solve them) in Latin America. Without a doubt, it was the network of contacts that allowed us to take our project further and reach more people. The technical infrastructure enabled us to validate our technical decisions.”

Regional collaboration

One of the most distinctive features of Smart Agro RAF LATAM is its deeply collaborative nature, as it brings together researchers and specialists from:

• Brazil: Federal University of Pampa, Federal Institute of Rio Grande do Sul (linked to and supported by the initial project -ProRAF- which gave rise to Smart Agro RAF LATAM, via RNP through its ILÍADA initiative). 
• Colombia: University of Antioquia.

The project is led, as explained above, by Rodrigo Mansilha (Brazil), with a multidisciplinary team specialising in computing, blockchain and information security, working in collaboration with academic and local stakeholders in Colombia. 

Furthermore, the pilot directly involved nine farming families in Antioquia and Quindío, in Colombia, integrating local knowledge with technological development.

This collaboration between countries, institutions and communities reflects the potential of the Latin American digital ecosystem to co-create solutions with local relevance.

Progress via BELLA through the Early Adopters Blockchain programme

Smart Agro RAF LATAM made significant progress in its challenge thanks to the enabling environment provided by BELLAII and RedCLARA through the Early Adopters Blockchain programme. This allowed the team to access strategic mentoring, regional visibility and a structured framework for the development of the pilot. 

“We already had experience with our Brazilian infrastructure maintained by RNP. We felt that the testbed documentation was very important, even for overcoming language barriers,” says Rodrigo Mansilha. The specialist notes that participating in BELLAII’s Early Adopters Blockchain Programme and using the testbed was a valuable contribution to Smart Agro RAF LATAM, as “access to another large-scale testing environment helps to reinforce scientific results, beyond the technical validation of the integration”.

Using the blockchain testbed enabled the project’s development team to:

• Test the solution in a distributed, high-performance environment.
• Validate security, scalability and performance.
• Simulate real operating conditions at a regional level.

In their own words, as recorded in the final report at the conclusion of the Early Adopters Blockchain experience developed within the BELLAII framework: “The programme and the testbed were fundamental in transforming a conceptual idea into a technically valid and strategically focused pilot, allowing us to test in a real-world environment and align with RedCLARA’s vision.”

As the team itself noted, beyond the technical aspects, the unique value lies in RedCLARA’s advanced connectivity, which integrates capabilities, people and knowledge across Latin America. This environment facilitates joint experimentation and accelerates the maturation of solutions that transcend borders.

Real impacts for society

The impact of Smart Agro RAF LATAM is tangible and multifaceted. For producers (farming families), it offers greater autonomy over their data, improved regulatory compliance, and potential access to premium markets. For consumers, the benefits lie in transparency regarding the origin of food, and confidence in its quality and sustainability. For governments and institutions involved in agriculture and economic development, the added value lies in the development of more efficient auditing tools and better-designed public policies. Finally, for the region, the highly positive impact lies in driving the digital transformation of agriculture, reducing technological gaps, and fostering regional integration based on innovation; in the long term, this will also lead to cost reductions and improved food security.

Projection and scalability

Smart Agro RAF LATAM will move towards developing operational pilot schemes with agricultural cooperatives, integrating with commercial traceability systems, and expanding into new production chains and countries. The aim is to establish an ecosystem in which smallholder farmers can compete on a level playing field, supported by world-class technology and an unprecedented regional collaboration network.