# Blockchain Applications in Agribbusiness: A Systematic Review
###### Abstract
It is a distributed database, in which a group of people controls, registers, and shares information, that can be used in different kinds of applications and is interconnected through platforms and hardware all over the world. It has been identified as a technology that has a concept based on a protocol that is inviolable to human action and it is also based on three underlying technologies: peer-to-peer networks (P2P), cryptography, and distributed consistency algorithms [13]. It is also accompanied by a smart contract, which is not a necessary part of blockchain-based systems but provides natural support for transactions carried out using the technology [14]. A blockchain is a chain of information blocks interconnected in the digital environment of the internet, allowing for information on transactions of various kinds to be stored, linked, and recovered, forming a large database [15]. The blockchain networks can be categorized into public, private, and federated blockchains, based on the network management system adopted and the permissions allowed [16]. A private blockchain is a permissioned access platform; a public blockchain is a permissionless open data network in which any user can add data in the form of a transaction, which is an identification data package in the system, and these data can also be checked and copied; a federated blockchain combines the features of both private and public blockchains [16; 17]. Blockchain technology is claimed to be a technology of inviolable validation, having decentralization as a safety measure that creates consensus and confidence in direct communication between two parts, without third party intermediation. It is appropriate for situations requiring privacy, identity control, and permissions [17; 18]. Thus, a blockchain provides immutability, transparency, and almost instantaneous insurance in the form of information shared between two or more participants in a single transaction, eliminating the need for third parties, creating an immutable record which can be seen by all the relevant parties without being altered. When addressing the blockchain theme, it is common to think of cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin. However, experts in technology and economics are signaling that blockchains may be relevant in technological research and can be used in many areas in addition to Bitcoin [19]. Many organizations have integrated technologies which have been changing the environment and markets, making it easier to develop activities favoring all parts of the process, including the agribusiness segments, resulting in positive contributions to the agri-food supply chain. The current agribusiness supply chains are ineffective because their integrity can be easily counterfeited. Blockchain applications have the potential for automated control in which the product is traced from the farm to the consumer's table, depending on the 3P's (party, product, and premises) conditions; with this technology, the end consumer can select the product they want to consume, with safety in the product quality. In addition to the product quality differential, the price received by the producer tends to be higher because of the guarantees. In this way, blockchains can improve traceability in agribusiness, adding value not only for the producer but the entire production chain as well. Thus, an infrastructure supported by the use of this technology can help guarantee food safety, as effective tracking reduces losses in the logistic process [7; 8; 9; 10; 19; 20; 21; 22; 23]. Blockchain applications have been reported for other purposes related to agribusiness, such as precision agriculture and environmental monitoring [24], transactions certification [25], smart agriculture and smart contracts [26], consumer-retailer relationships [27; 28], sustainability and coordination, performance, and order management [29], development of safer algorithms [30], and fair-trading practices [31]. Although blockchain is a new technology, its uses and potential applications in agribusiness are already being reported.