$CBD — how DeFi frees farmers in the developing world
Greenheart CBD is one of Europe’s leading licensed CBD “seed to shelf” producers. The business, although rooted in “the real world”, is launching a blockchain DeFi platform, powered by the $CBD token, on 6 May 2021 (IDO on the BSCPad platform).
It aims at nothing less than allowing farmers in developing countries to switch from subsistence farming to more profitable CBD crop farming, while ensuring customers a traceable, high quality CBD product.
Before diving into the description of the platform itself, let’s answer a simple question:
What is CBD, is it legal?
CBD is short for cannabidiol, a molecule found in the cannabis plant. Its chemical structure is very close to that of tetrahydrocannabinol, THC, which is the active ingredient in marijuana. But the effects of these two molecules on the human body differ greatly.
THC produces a “high” feeling that may lead to addiction, hence its prohibition in many countries/states. Meanwhile CBD creates no such “high”. Some animal studies show anti-anxiety and anti-inflammatory properties and this may explain why some people report CDB oil helps them with anxiety and chronic pain problems.
While the therapeutic properties and effects of CBD are still to be confirmed and subject to much ongoing research, extracting it from hemp as well as its use in making oil, cream or even cookies is legal in most parts of the world.
Greenheart CBD
Greenheart CBD is an Irish company founded in 2019 by Paul Walsh and Mark Canavan. It uses the most modern technologies to help farmers maximise crop cultivation. Crops are monitored by drone; while artificial intelligence helps to optimize production.
The company now offers a number of organic CBD products providing full traceability “from seed to shelf”.
You might ask how blockchain fits into this already successful business story. Well, until now, Greenheart CBD has used hemp grown mainly in Ireland, but is in the process of securing crops from other places in the world, mainly developing countries. While doing so, they discovered that many farmers from such countries couldn’t get loans to allow them to switch from their usual crops (“cash crops”) to CBD crops.
In Greenheart’s own terms: “Farmers have no real access to mainstream financial services. [They] are unable to move to sustainable, environment-friendly farming and more income positive farming.”
DeFi to provide financing to farmers around the world
If mainstream banks have failed to provide financing to farmers, why not simply bypass them? Why not offer a lending platform through which farmers in any country could borrow money to help them develop CBD cultivation?
The CBD DeFi platform aims at becoming the go-to source of funding for farmers in both developed and developing countries. It will consist of a decentralized pool of liquidity, developed on the blockchain.
The farmers will get a loan to allow them to switch from cash crops to growing CBD. Once the loan is accepted, they will receive a “starter kit” in the form of seeds to plant and seeding machines. This will be followed by Greenheart tech, the key element of this being the Zenadrone, a drone built specifically to cultivate, feminize, and harvest CBD crops. This will be accompanied by the technology needed to capture data at each stage of the process.
Once equipped they will be able to produce the purest crop at a decent yield. Greenheart will buy these crops from the farmers and share a percentage of the profits with them.
CBD Smart Contract
The CBD smart contract will be at the heart of the platform. It will:
- Allow direct lending to farmers;
- Calculate the interest rate on loans;
- Manage and record all financial aspects of the loans: interest rate calculations, outstanding balancing, remaining loan terms, etc;
- Automate loan repayments. Loan repayments will be made to the lender automatically and the smart contract updated with the latest borrowing and financing information.
A loan to a farmer could be anywhere between $500 and $50,000 over five years with an interest rate as low as 5%.
Greenheart estimates that a farmer in the developing world might see a revenue increase of about 67% a year switching from existing cash crops to CBD cultivation. This could transform the living conditions of low income farmers and their families by allowing them to get out of subsistence farming.
Why stop there?
Many developments are possible once the CBD platform is operational.
- Lending/crowdfunding by the community of $CBD token holders
- Lending to non-CBD related projects in Environmental, Sustainable & Governance (ESG) related areas.
References
You’ll find more informations and details in this video by Astropark.
Project links:
Website: https://greenheartcbd.io/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/greenheart_cbd
Telegram: https://t.me/greenheart_cbd
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greenheartcbd/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/28536324/
Learn more about CBD and the difference with THC in this video.
Disclaimer
The article is for informational purposes only. It contains no financial advice. Always do your own research before investing in any crypto project.
