Listen: What is blockchain and how can it help farmers?

Rabobank's agricultural analyst Wes Lefroy. Photo / Supplied

There is a lot of excitement and talk about 'blockchain' but yet little is known about what it actually is and how this digitised technology could be implemented in the agrisector.

Today on The Country, Jamie Mackay asked Rabobank's agricultural analyst Wes Lefroy to explain blockchain and how it can help farmers.

Lefroy has been closely following the potential of this new digitised approach to managing supply chains and says it has the potential to revolutionise the food and agri supply chain.

But what is blockchain? Lefroy says "Blockchain essentially is a digital platform that stores and verifies transactions between users."

For example - when a farmer sells milk, a new record or "block" is created on the ledger, then verified by the network - and added to the blockchain.

Blockchain is beneficial as the information is encrypted and non-replicable which helps with proof of origin and transparency of supply chain says Lefroy.

Still confused? Listen below: