Do you think you know what you’re eating? Marko Kozjak reveals through the VeeMee platform

19. July 2019. Nikola Vido

Article about VeeMee on Agroklubu.

 

Aware of the problems of the agricultural sector in Croatia, Marko Kozjak decided to find a concrete solution for Croatian farmers, which would help in the placement of family farm products to the final consumer, organized production, as well as in the placement of agricultural products on Croatian, European and other foreign markets. To this end, he launched an innovative project – VeeMee Agro Platform.

Because, through many years of work in the procurement, sale and production of fruits and vegetables, he saw the need to introduce a system of standardization of product information, primarily for the end consumer, the young entrepreneur in 2014 embarked on a conceptual design, and two years later, private with the funds started the realization of the project itself. In order to close the financial construction, he teamed up with a friend, now a partner, Nikola Vido, and this year, with a new partner, they also made a recapitalization of VeeMee.

Do you think you know what you're eating? Marko Kozjak reveals through the VeeMee platform

VeeMee Agro Platform (Big Data) is a base of farmers and companies, ie their production and other capacities implemented over 1,100 different manufacturers, companies and crafts and covers production on over 8,000 ha.

VeeMee is Google for farmers and customers

“The platform we launched and the company share the same name – VeeMee, which symbolically represents the ‘We-We’ relationship. It is a network platform that, through the Personal ID (PID) of the manufacturer, provides relevant information about the origin and origin of the product and The primary web page contains a simple search engine, but also an advanced search engine for farmers or companies. The search engine works similarly to Google but within its PID database of producers and companies. To clarify, the neutral mark of origin – PID (Producer Identity) is the identity of the producer We define it as the standardization of information about the manufacturer that is relevant to the end consumer “, explains Marko Kozjak.

In order to create a PID, it is necessary, he points out, to fill out a detailed questionnaire that provides relevant data of the manufacturer to the end customer. After filling in the questionnaire, everything is implemented in a platform that, along with each PID, also contains the generated code.

“QR code Quick response, which literally means quick response, is implemented on the declaration or placed as a separate declaration. When implemented in the system, the code is issued to the farmer or company. The specified QR code is readable by free application via any smartphone, no additional installation of applications is required, existing ones, such as Facebook or Viber, can be used “, says the entrepreneur.

The search engine he launched works like a “Google” search engine – just enter the goods or the name of the farmer and you will get the required results.

How does all this work in practice?

When the end consumer buys a product, such as paprika, in a retail chain, market or stall and then wants to know more about the manufacturer, in order to get better acquainted with the food he buys, the platform and PID allow him to check the manufacturer via QR code on the packaging or with the product declaration.

“Code and search engine provides traceability of goods that allows verification in a short period and thus enables brand, ie traceability of the individual. In this way, we have ensured the transparency of the Croatian manufacturer to the end customer, distributor/company/purchaser, as well as to the retail chain, foreign customers and to Croatian and foreign investors. In addition to all the above, additional upgrades to the profile are possible, such as nutritional values, etc. “, explains our interlocutor.

“So far, over 400,000 stickers/declarations with the proven origin of goods have been implemented. This year we are transferring the number to tons and we plan to ensure traceability for more than 10,000 tons of goods from Croatia and the EU – within a fresh assortment of fruits and vegetables and wine, milk, honey. We use the slogan ‘Do you think you know what you’re eating’ and ‘Do you think you know what you drink’, in order to provocatively motivate customers, provide an opportunity to meet an individual and raise awareness about the food we consume, “explains the entrepreneur.

A project that will reduce food waste and waste generation

Part of the project, called Food Wastage, involves coordinating all movements of materials, products and goods, in physical, informational and organizational terms, with the aim of reducing waste generation and food waste, bringing back “good” food, speeding up all business processes and reducing costs.

“Cooperation with 10 companies within the EU uses our platform – the development and service of LDC of our partners, during the last 12 months, over 170 tons of goods were saved and logistics were provided for the daily delivery of 900 tons of goods,” says Kozjak.

In addition to the projects that have come to life, we should also mention the projects in development – Crowdfunding, AI Artificial Intelligence and the First Digital Declaration. “A platform for potential investments through Crowdfunding has been upgraded (a way of raising money from numerous donors for a certain project). A farmer who wants to increase production/growth, develop, employ, will have the opportunity to raise funds through the VeeMee platform. The market is expected in September 2019., AI Artificial Intelligence recognizes products and manufacturers through an application that uses machine learning and artificial intelligence. The third project in development is the first digital declaration that would enable the prevention of food waste at the EU level, 10-15 per cent. we plan to place it on the market by the end of 2019 “, says a young entrepreneur with a vision, Marko Kozjak.

Author: Sanja Rapaić

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