Traceability for the Fresh Produce Industry
The Covid-19 crisis has undoubtedly impacted
the fresh produce industry. Fruit and vegetable
exports have declined significantly, and
consumers have become more conscious of
food safety and quality.
These changes indicate the increased demand
for more complete information on the safety,
quality, and provenance of fresh produce.
This o�ers an opportunity for fresh produce
businesses to establish a traceability system to
better understand and respond to consumers’
changing purchasing behaviours, establishing
customer trust by ensuring product quality and
providing greater transparency in the supply
chain.
The Opportunity
Traceability plays a crucial role in the fresh
produce industry, particularly in cases of food
safety issues. Despite the protective measures
in place to prevent contamination in the fresh
produce industry, outbreaks of food poisoning
from fruit and vegetables occur at an increasing
rate according to the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration.
The FSANZ noted in 2019 that fruits, herbs, and
vegetables are the most recalled products due
to Salmonella contamination. Tracing and
recalling fresh produce through the supply
chain can be a very costly, di�cult, and
labour-intensive process according to the U.S.
Center for Disease Control. If not properly
managed, these cases can result in a decrease
in demand for the product line, directly
a�ecting profitability and the company’s brand
reputation.
The Challenges
Figure 1: Number of microbial contamination recalls from 1 January 2010 to 31 December 2019.
Produce traceability is the key to reducing
costly product recalls and protecting public
health as it provides the capability to quickly
identify the precise source of contaminated
produce and withdraw them from the supply
chain. Having an accurate traceability system in
place is critical to ensure preparedness in the
event of a crisis. It simplifies the labour-intensive
process of a product recall and protects
consumers through faster identification of the
contaminated product. It also reduces the
quantity of produce being recalled, and
therefore limits losses and reduces costs.
Supply chain traceability makes it possible to
obtain information on the source, location, and
movement of produce from the growers to the
consumers, as well as identify factors a�ecting
quality and delivery. It allows businesses to
monitor and manage their supply chain more
e�ectively and e�ciently, ensures product
quality, reduces waste, and protects your profits.
Consumers can scan a QR code and be given
instant access to information on the product’s
provenance, quality, and authenticity to assist
them in their purchasing decisions (see figure
2). The option to verify the quality and journey
of a product improves a customer’s confidence
in the product quality. A traceability label is a
powerful competitive tool that is highly valued
by today’s consumers as it signals that a
product is of high quality. The Journal of Food
Products Marketing reported that consumers
are willing to pay around 29.8% more than the
standard price for fresh produce with a
traceability label.
Furthermore, a traceability label provides a
direct marketing channel which connects
consumers with producers. It gives an
opportunity for brands to sell and market
directly to consumers, to engage consumers
with interactive mobile experiences and tell the
story behind their brand. This provides the
potential for brands to earn a higher margin,
increase consumer loyalty, and gain direct
insights to their consumers’ purchasing
behaviour.
The Solution
Figure 2: Consumers can verify a product’s provenance, quality and authenticity.
OPPORTUNITY FOR BUSINESSES TO GENERATE REVENUE THROUGH:
Supply Chain Optimisation
Supply chain traceability allows businesses to monitor and manage their
supply chain more e�ectively and e�ciently, ensures product quality,
reduces waste, and protects your profits.
Recall Preparedness
Traceability simplifies the labour-intensive process of a product recall
through faster identification of the contaminated product. It reduces the
quantity of produce being recalled, limits losses and reduces costs.
Provenance
Supply chain traceability makes it possible to obtain information on the
source, location, and movement of produce from the growers to the
consumers, as well as identify factors a�ecting quality and delivery.
Authentication and Consumer Trust
The Journal of Food Products Marketing reported that consumers are
willing to pay around 29.8% more than the standard price for fresh
produce with traceable information on provenance and quality.
Direct-to-Consumer Marketing
Traceabiliy allows brands to sell directly to consumers, creating the
potential for brands to earn a higher margin, increase consumer loyalty,
and gain direct insights to their consumers’ purchasing behaviour.
HOW IT WORKS
At iTrazo, we help brands and product owners
with their Traceability journey with our
combined experience in technology,
agriculture and manufacturing. We provide
you a seamless, cost e�ective Traceability
implementation allowing you to realise your
return in investment almost immediately.
Our award-winning platform utilises a range of
trace technologies for brand protection and
consumer engagement, including IoT, NFC,
RFID and Serialisation codes such as QR and
Datamatrix.
We can help your produce business build
superior understanding and control from farm
to consumer by:
• Individually identifying, tracing, and
tracking products, cases, pallets,
containers, and other assets with an
active digital identity
• Automatically capture data with
connected trace and scanning
technologies
• Employ real time geolocation,
anywhere on the globe
• Engage consumers at point of
purchase and consumption
Working with Us
The active digital identity is created and applied to the process, product, asset, service and linked
together to create end-to-end traceability.
We deliver superior business insights,
quality control and cost reduction through:
• Improved supply chain optimisation
• Controlled product recall and spoilage
• Counterfeit detection
• Engagement with consumers
anywhere in the world to protect and
grow brand value and deliver product
transparency
• Real time data insights with advanced
analytics using AI and Machine
The Benefits
Contact us today for a free consultation and product demo!
www.itrazotracetech.com
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@itrazotracetech
@itrazotracetech