Brazilian Institute BVRio To Use Ethereum’s Ledger Against Illegal Timber Trading

BVRio, a Brazilian organization promoting green markets, together with ConsenSys (a venture production studio focused on Ethereum Dapps), announced a partnership to use Regis, a distributed application running on top of Ethereum as a secure ledger.

Ethereum is a cryptocurrency and Blockchain platform supporting Smart Contract applications and Distributed programs, this technology enables the creation of initiatives like Regis, a decentralized online registry system built on top of Ethereum.

Developed by ConsenSys, a New York-based venture production studio, Regis acquired its first client: BVRio, a Brazilian institute promoting the use of market mechanism to facilitate compliance with environmental laws. In an announcement, ConsenSys explained the problem BVRio was facing regarding the potential alteration of wood shipment records.

BVRio has a strong presence in the timber trading sector and, since illegal timber trading is a global issue, particularly in Brazil, transparency is mandatory. In order to improve the organization’s process for trading overview, Regis will provide transparent records of the reports that each timber shipment is given.

Timber shipments are rated based on a wide number of variables, including the source of the timber, the way it was produced, and even how it was delivered. This score weights on the timber’s market valuation, therefore, this process must be as transparent as possible.

BVRio is often contacted by timber producers regarding the score given to the timber shipment and often complain about discrepancies with the Brazilian organization and their own numbers:

As time has passed since the report was published, producers are often unsure of why the score for a given shipment changed and doubt that the score wasn’t altered internally. BVRio cannot prove that the records have not been changed since they were produced because the company has full control of the database.

With Regis, and thanks to Ethereum’s Blockchain, BVRio will be able to prove the authenticity of its past score reports.

By using Regis, the organization can prove that past reports were not altered. The incorporation of the public ledger will develop the trust that is missing between BVRio and the producers and strengthen their business relationship.

Image via BVRio.

Source ConsenSys.