Near Foundation Joins Processed Foods Giant Grupo Nutresa to Unveil Web3 Loyalty Program in Latin America

The Near Foundation, the nonprofit organization behind the carbon-neutral blockchain of the same name, will be rolling out a loyalty points program for Grupo Nutresa, one of Latin America’s largest processed food companies.

The open-source loyalty program is said to be the first of its kind to use the Near protocol, and aims to reach a million users in Colombia and throughout Latin America, according to a press release. The deployment will begin before the end of the first quarter of 2023.

Colombia-based Grupo Nutresa will assemble its existing loyalty programs onto one user-friendly platform supported by Near’s blockchain technology. The new program will eliminate the need for users to hold multiple accounts and will provide Grupo Nutresa with insights about customer behavior.

Swiss-based Near’s energy-efficient blockchain and dapp development platform fit with Grupo Nutresa’s emphasis on environmentally sustainable practices. The Dow Jones Sustainability Indices has ranked Grupo Nutresa as the world’s most sustainable food company for two consecutive years.

“We are excited to partner with one of the biggest multinationals in Latin America and help it to lead the way through its first Web3 loyalty program,” Near Foundation CEO Marieke Flament said in the press release.

The Near Foundation declined to comment on the cost of the partnership. Near’s platform is built on a sharded, proof-of-stake, layer 1 blockchain.

Grupo Nutresa, which trades on the Colombia stock exchange, generated $3.1 billion in revenue in 2020 and has been expanding internationally in recent years. It sells products in 78 countries via eight business units, including meats, coffee, ice cream and pasta.

In the release Fabián Andrés Restrepo, Grupo Nutresa vice president of sales and digital transformation, called Near “an important ally for developing and implementing this loyalty strategy.”

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