Alipay and its parent company Ant Financial announced a partnership with local Chinese authorities to use blockchain for ensuring the authenticity of rice, local media report August 28.

A major player in the Chinese market, Alipay boasted 400 million users in August 2017. The company is owned by Alibaba affiliate Ant Financial.

According to Global Times, the deal with the municipal government in Wuchang in Heilongjiang Province aims to stop counterfeit versions of the well-known Wuchang rice making it into the market.

“This is the first time that Wuchang Rice has changed the long-distance distribution method for the whole country, shortening the original delivery time of 3-7 days to less than 2 days,” the publication adds about the benefits of blockchain introduction:

“Information such as warehousing, delivery, and trucking of warehousing and distribution links is also visible to consumers in real time.”

The move comes a week after China ramped up its cryptocurrency ban with further blocks on exchanges and exchange of information about the sector.

On the contrary, blockchain continues to capture the imagination of Beijing, with various partnerships and integrations ongoing within both the state and private sectors.

Alipay has also taken a tough stance on users performing cryptocurrency trading using its accounts, Cointelegraph reported over the weekend, while in June, Ant Financial began a blockchain remittance project with the Philippines.