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The blockchain is a technology that creates a ledger of transactions on the internet that is secure, time and cost-effective, and easily accessible. It has no central authority, it is instead a shared record of transactions distributed by a large set of users. It is made of series of blocks of data which record a batch of transactions. The blocks are electronically chained together and locked with advanced cryptography in order to create a permanent and public record of transactions that can’t be deleted after created.

But, what may be the financial uses of such exciting technology?

The most obvious and interesting application which is making large banks excited is about the technology being able to keep track of trades of bonds, and stocks, and make sure that payments are made properly. Presently, this process involves a lot of intermediaries, like banks, traders, exchanges, brokers, and clearing houses, who may end up being an unnecessary cost for investment banks, or hedge funds, or an ordinary person who wishes to make some investments in the stock market. Additionally, it is much more time effective, as trades are verified and paid instantly, and currently, it takes no less than two days to verify the payments have been done.

Of course, there are still some issues to resolve. There is still distrust on the safety of the blockchain applications in finance, as the risk is too big if for instance the chain is hacked, and large amounts of money and information are stolen or hidden.

Furthermore, as the system is decentralized, if something goes wrong there is no one to account for the damages caused.

Finally, it is a drastic change for big financial institutions who will take time to make the necessary changes in order to make that technology part of their processes.

Concluding, I believe that blockchain is one of the most interesting technologies that can have a major impact on how we deal with money nowadays. Do you also think it will take over the financial world?

 

Rita Guégués

 

Sources

https://www.coindesk.com/information/how-blockchain-technology-change-finance/

https://www.zdnet.com/article/why-blockchain-could-transform-the-world-financial-system-and-what-that-would-mean/

 

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In the Netherlands there is a “National Week Without Meat”, Google is pushing for plant-based meals and less meat on its cafeterias for employees, and Beyoncé has recently announced she would become a vegan, having an impact on some of her most dedicated fans.

The impact of eating meat and animal-based products on the environment and the world is massive. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations with 2006 data observed that Animal Agriculture was responsible for 18% of greenhouse gas emissions and for 34 to 76 trillion gallons of annual water consumption – in the US alone accounting for 80-90% of the total water consumption. Furthermore, it has a massive impact on soil fertility and on the quality of water sheets, polluting the surrounding areas of livestock farms.

In 2006 the world population was around 6.6 billion people. In 2018, this number escalated to 7.6 billion people in the world, mostly due to emerging markets in which meat consumption levels, in general, are still lower than those in the West, but are on the rise.

Although the number of vegans and people adopting a plant-based diet has been increasing, it is not growing at a rate fast enough to decrease the environment destruction trends. Actually, beef and animal-based products consumption keeps increasing.

I have seen rational and smart people confronted with the impact of meat on the environment, not to mention on health, and, still, they are not willing to make a change. And why is that? The answer is always the same: they love the flavor, the sensation, and the pleasure eating meat generates for them.

It seems the answer to tackle this would be some sort of plant-based meat that mimics the effects of meat. Gladly, this solution is already being developed. Recent breakthroughs in food technology are allowing some scientists to use neuroscience to create plant-based beef-like patties, made with wheat, potato proteins, and coconut oil, with even 25% more protein than a comparably sized beef burger.

By splitting real meat, molecule by molecule, they found one that is crucial to deceive human sensory experience, heme – the catalyst for all the aroma compounds and color that make meat sense like meat to human beings. This molecule can be extracted from soy plants, which allows for plant-based hamburgers to taste like real meat hamburgers. This company is called Impossible Foods, but there are many other companies and start-ups, like Miyoko’s Kitchen, and Beyond Meat, using science and technological advancements to create new, better tasting, substitute products for meat and other animal-based products. I really believe these products would incredibly disrupt the meat industry and the agricultural sector.

Imagine the possibility of not eating meat with the same pleasure of being a meat eater. I already do not eat it. Would you meat me in the middle?

Rita Guégués

Sources:

Food Revolution Network (2018). Vegan Statistics: Why The Global Rise in Plant-Based Eating Isn’t A Fad. [online] Food Revolution Network. Available at: https://foodrevolution.org/blog/vegan-statistics-global/.

Rompaey, S. (2018). Meat industry ready for disruption. [online] RetailDetail. Available at: https://www.retaildetail.eu/en/news/food/“meat-industry-ready-disruption”.

Steinfeld, H. (2006). Livestock’s long shadow. Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.