IFT releases guide on food traceability

AN EXTENSIVE document on food traceability released by the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) Global Food Traceability Center presents the tracking capabilities of the global food industry to date.  A collaborative effort amongst 55 experts, the guide covers best practices in the bakery, dairy, meat and poultry, processed foods, produce and seafood sectors. It also compares traceability amongst these six sectors.

“Our guidance document helps fill in one of the most significant gaps that regulators face when developing new policies—‘What is the industry currently capable of doing and how much can realistically be asked of them?’” said Tejas Bhatt, programme director of the GFTC, and one of the lead authors. “This document can facilitate more balanced, effective, science-based, and cost-conscious policies and serve as a blueprint for what is practical for the food industry to improve food safety, save money and help protect the public.”

Where data must be collected

A Guidance Document on the Best Practices in Food Traceability explains where data capturing is most needed. In the supply chain there are vital points also called critical tracking events (CTEs) where collecting and storing key data elements (KDEs) are necessary. These critical tracking events include:

Transportation events support external product tracing between supply-chain locations, resulting from the physical movement of product by air, truck, rail, or ship from one supply-chain location to another supply-chain location.

Transformation events support internal product tracing within the four walls of a company. Examples include when product ingredients from one or more suppliers or sources are combined, or when a product is further processed such as by cutting, cooking, or repacking.

Depletion events capture how product is removed from the supply chain, such as when a case of fresh produce is opened and placed in self-service bins at a retail grocery store, or a packaged product is sold at a retail grocery store, or when a case of product is used in preparing menu items at a restaurant.

The Global Food Traceability Center is a not-for-profit collaborative, public-private partnership launched by the IFT in 2013. It helps companies and government agencies to better understand the nature of food traceability requirements, how to use technologies to improve responsiveness and reliability in the event of food-related emergencies, and the value and commercial benefits of food traceability.