Benefits and Practical Methods of Introducing QR Codes in Agriculture and Direct-From-Farm Sales
Traceability of Production Histories
Amid growing interest in food safety, systems are spreading rapidly in which a QR code is attached to the packaging of agricultural products. When consumers scan it, production histories such as the producer's name, growing location, sowing date, harvest date, pesticides used, and soil test results are displayed.
The "food traceability" initiative promoted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries calls for information to be recorded / passed on at each stage, from production through distribution to sales. The QR code is the simplest and lowest-cost means of passing on this information. Detailed cultivation records that could not be achieved with barcodes because of insufficient capacity can be consolidated into a single QR code. Being able to confirm with their own eyes "when, where, by whom, and how this vegetable was grown" directly increases consumers' trust in the producer.
Linking With Direct-From-Farm E-Commerce
A path in which a QR code is attached to products at roadside stations or farmers' markets and scanning it takes you to the producer's e-commerce site is a powerful mechanism for encouraging repeat purchases. If you present a QR code together with a message like "If you like this vegetable, you can order it online from next time," you can turn the one-time encounter of face-to-face sales into an ongoing customer relationship.
It is also effective for guiding people toward regular deliveries (subscriptions). A model in which customers access the regular delivery sign-up page from the QR code at their first purchase and a set of seasonal vegetables is delivered every month leads directly to stabilizing farmers' income. If you switch the QR code's link destination dynamically, you can also flexibly update information about seasonal recommended products and limited sets.
Pesticide Spraying Records and Support for GAP Certification
Obtaining / maintaining GAP (Good Agricultural Practice: agricultural production process management) certification requires a system for accurately managing pesticide use records and being able to disclose them to third parties. If you install a QR code in each field and operate so that it is scanned and a record is entered every time pesticide is sprayed, missing records are greatly reduced compared with paper ledgers.
At audit time, simply scanning the QR code displays the full spraying history of the field in question in chronological order, so you are no longer swamped with preparing documents. With certifications that require spraying records to be submitted, such as JGAP and ASIAGAP, every audit involves the work of extracting and organizing the relevant parts from the paper ledger, but if the records are kept digitally from the start, that extraction work itself becomes unnecessary. For consumers, too, by publishing part of the pesticide spraying records via the QR code, you can show objective support for claims such as "reduced pesticide" and "specially cultivated."
Use in Harvest Experiences / Agritourism
At tourist farms and strawberry-picking facilities, the QR code on the admission ticket becomes a multifunctional guidance tool. A system that displays a farm map, descriptions of varieties, how to tell when produce is ripe for eating, and allergy information when scanned reduces the burden of explanations on staff while increasing the value of the visitor experience.
If visitors take home the produce they harvested along with a message such as "This is the XX you harvested" and a QR code, it is also possible to stage things so that the producer's story and cooking recipes are displayed when they scan it at home. It also works as a device for encouraging sharing on SNS, and a customer-attracting effect through word of mouth can be expected. According to statistics from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the market size of green tourism (hands-on tourism in farming, mountain, and fishing villages) has been on an expanding trend year after year, and demand for digital tools that improve the quality of experiences will likely continue to grow.
Barriers to Introduction and a Realistic Way to Start
Introducing QR codes in agriculture tends to feel like a high hurdle for producers who are not familiar with IT, but the actual cost of introduction is extremely low. QR codes can be generated with free tools, a home printer is enough for printing, and the linked page can be replaced with a free form service or an SNS profile page.
What we recommend as a first step is to put one QR code sticker on the cardboard boxes you ship. The linked page can be just the producer's self-introduction and contact details. That alone is the first step toward "agriculture with a visible face." Once you get used to it, you can gradually add links to cultivation records and your e-commerce site.
Digitalizing farm management is not something only for large-scale farms.