Subject: Increase the incomes of small-scale food producers.

Technological module: APIs


A) Exploratory research

Quintal (Backyard)

  1. Project carriers

    2. Mirian Wrublevski, the creator of the project.

  2. Beneficiaries

    3. Organic food producers and consumers.

  3. Users

    4. Organic food producers and consumers.

  4. Need

    5. The project stems from the need for locally produced, pesticide free foods.

  5. Principle

    6. Quintal connects small scale producers and everyday people who grow food in their backyard to consumers who wish to purchase locally grown, pesticide-free food.
    The name comes from the custom in certain regions to grow food in your own backyard. The main issue with this practice is often dealing with leftover produce which is either wasted or sold by word of mouth to the neighbours. This app eases the marketing of the produce, therefore enabling producers to establish a more streamlined sales process and source of income. It

  6. Main technologies involved

    7. A database is used to store all the consumer and producer information.
    API's are used to display map and GPS location is used to display the location's closest to the user.

  7. Sources

Misfits market

  1. Project carriers

    2. Misfits Maket is a for profit company who has achieved unicorn status last year.

  2. Beneficiaries

    3. Consumers and producers who would otherwise not have been able to sell certain produce

  3. Users

    4. Consumers

  4. Need

    5. Avoiding the waste of imperfect food items that are refused by grocery stores, have a harder time being sold at open markets.

  5. Principle

    6. Misfits market aims to sell food items that do not meet certain aesthetic principles and therefore often end up being wasted. They partner with producers and grocery stores to resell these items to consumers at a fraction of their grocery store price. While this concept will often not lead to producers earning a profit, it will at least enable them to coop up costs for food that would otherwise not have been sold.

  6. Main technologies involved

    7. Databases to store the data of the available items and customer orders Possibly APIs to gather data about unsold items from producers.

  7. Sources

Agro Market Day

  1. Project carriers

    2. Lisa Katusiime and her team at Likamis Software Limited with support from the Young Farmers’ Coalition (Yofaco)

  2. Beneficiaries

    3. Local farmers and consumers

  3. Users

    4. Local farmers and consumers

  4. Need

    5. Farmers in dispersed villages have to travel long distances with heavy loads, often by bike to attempt and sell their produce. These sales occur in rotating markets where they have no guarantee buyers will turn up. Similarly, consumers have to travel long distances to attempt and purchase food. Consumers go to these markets and have to guess which markets will have the produce they want and the prices. The second main issue this product aims to solve is education of farmers on best practices for high yields.

  5. Principle

    6. Agro Market Day allows producers to easily post pictures of their produce, along with the price they are selling it for and the location of the market they will be present at. Consumers can then search for the produce they want therefore increasing flux to the markets as they now know where to find the desired products. The platform also enables producers to follow training courses to learn about the best practises to improve their farming/fishing skills and therefore increase their revenue.

  6. Main technologies involved

    7. The company relies on databases to store the information about buyers and sellers, the Google Maps API to display the location of the local markets availble and payment APIs for the training courses.

  7. Sources

Compras Coop PA

  1. Project carriers

    2. Organization of Brazilian Cooperatives in Pará (OCB) in partnership with the Rural Federal University of Amazônia (UFRA).

  2. Beneficiaries

    3. Small-scale food producers in Pará (Brazilian state) and consumers within the state.

  3. Users

    4. Small-scale food producers in Pará (Brazilian state) and consumers within the state.

  4. Need
    5. During the pandemic, small scale food producers were unable to make sufficient sales due to farmers markets no longer being able to take place. Producers began turning to social media to advertise their products on their personal pages but were not reaching a significant audience to make sales.
  5. Principle

    6. Coop PA was created to assemble the producers need to replace a marketplace which was suddenly no longer possible. The association OCB along with UFRA decided to create an app to replace this marketplace. The app assembles the produduce available and enables consumers to place orders and drive through to pick them at alloted times.

  6. Main technologies involved

    7. The main technologies involved are internal APIs which enable consumers to search for the available produce in the pick up area of their choice.

  7. Sources

B) Deepening

I. Quintal

  1. Carriers and actors of the project

    2. The sole carrier of the project is the creator, Mirian Wrublevski.

  2. Research question

    3. How to leverage citizen participation in the circular food economy, promote pesticide-free foods and reduce waste?

  3. Reason I selected the project

    4. I chose this project for three reasons:

    1. It shows a profound understanding of its users and leverages that to empower communities to share their resources more efficiently.
    2. This platform also democratizes the consumption of organic foods which, in Brazil, are often thought of as expensive and inaccessible to the majority of the population.
    3. the UX is very friendly and pleasant which is confirmed by the reviews on the app/play store which show users seem to genuinely have a smooth experience on the app.

II. User scenario

  1. Users

    2. Organic food producers and consumers.

  2. Persona
  3. Key features
    1. Seller: Update details (price,photo,location,description) of produce
    2. Buyer: Find produce
    3. Seller + Buyer: Communicate via whatsapp (if futher information is necessary)
    4. Share photos + links on Instagram and Facebook
  4. UX storyboard

Technical analysis

  1. General principle

    2. Users willing to sell produce take photos of the produce and upload them along with its details such as price, description and location. This location is made available to prospective buyers who will see sellers show up on a map of their nearby area. They can also search for an address. A product page with the details is shown to the buyer and they can then add them to their cart. A list of desired produce will be sent to the seller. The purchase will take place outside the platform.

  2. Technical overview - API version

    3. APIs are used throughout the project. They are used to store seller location and display these locations on a map to prospective buyers.
    Further, the Google Maps API is also used to suggest delivery routes to sellers who may need to make several deliveries.
    The app also connects to the instagram API to allow the users to share posts and stories with their produce in order to further advertise them.
    Fianlly, the app uses the whatsapp API to connect sellers to buyers who wish to exchange further information.

  3. Added value thanks to APIs

    4. APIs are the basis of this project as it allows users to look at a map, and find sellers closest to them.
    The route feature is also essential to sellers who may otherwise have a hard time figuring out how to plan out their deliveries.
    It also enables the sharing of the produce on social media directly instead of having to go through separate posts.