A local IT infrastructure and legal framework must
be in place first.. If they are, anyone with web access, or whose bank, coffee
authority or IT provider is linked into the system, can access it, either as a
full member or by buying the service on a retail basis.
In practice only those countries whose customs and
possibly coffee industry authorities have accepted the system and have installed
the necessary capability will benefit. It seems likely that larger producing
countries will be more interested because for them the potential economies of
scale are tremendous. The roasting sector will also participate more and more
because of the control and information the network provides, which will permit
some to move from just-in-time systems to vendor managed inventory systems.
Even if a roaster is not linked into the system, the
importer can surrender the electronic documents and have them replicated as
paper originals by the original issuing authority, for instance the carrier or
warehouse.
For the buyer it is essential however that the
exporter is linked into the system. Given the cost savings and reduced working
capital requirements the system provides, this linkage can become an important
issue when considering the viability of any particular transaction or business
relationship with an origin country or an individual exporter.