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QR-Driven Anti-Counterfeit System to Empower Smallholder Farmers in India

India’s smallholder farmers often face two persistent challenges: unknowingly purchasing counterfeit agricultural inputs and lacking meaningful incentives to remain loyal to trusted brands. To address this, Bayer’s FarmRise platform launched a tech-enabled intervention that embeds each Bayer product with a unique QR code. Farmers can scan the code via the Bayer FarmRise mobile app to verify product authenticity and earn “Bayer Coins” digital rewards redeemable as cashbacks.


Each Bayer product featured a scannable QR code, enabling farmers to verify authenticity and earn digital rewards. This created a seamless phygital ecosystem connecting offline product purchases with a digital engagement and rewards platform.


The initiative leveraged key technologies such as AI-driven scan analytics, geo-targeted WhatsApp communication, and loyalty-based conversion tracking. 


The initiative targeted millions of registered farmers across under-served rural regions in multiple Indian states. To date, around 8 million QR scans have been recorded, reflecting widespread farmer participation and a growing shift toward the use of safe and informed inputs.


The initiative was implemented through partnerships with independent agri-retailers and over 1,500 Better Life Farming (BLF) Centers—Bayer-supported agri-entrepreneurs - creating a seamless phygital ecosystem linking offline product purchases with digital engagement and rewards

Impact / Outcome
"Trust through Transparency & Incentives: A mobile-based QR system linked to a gamified loyalty engine-built trust and encouraged repeat purchases among rural farmers. Real-time Feedback Loop: Instant scan-to-reward gratification provided behavioral insights, enabled regional trend tracking, and prevented fraud via scan overlap detection. Localized Adoption: Localized, user-friendly messaging ensured adoption among semi-literate users. Impactful Outcomes: Farmers reported fewer counterfeit product complaints and increased digital engagement, even in low-literacy, low-connectivity regions. Scalable & Modular Design: The initiative's flexible architecture—QR authentication, loyalty, and localized content—makes it easily adaptable across markets and value chains."
Location
India
Sector
Food & agriculture
Year published
25 July 2025
Organization involved
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Bayer
Agritech
Agritech

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