Food Safety and Traceability

This is Tim Hammerich of the Ag Information Network with your Farm of the Future Report.

With foodborne illnesses being a real threat to the produce industry, Judy Clark, CEO of Fresh Texas, says that food safety and traceability are among the most important aspects of the industry and an area they are excited to see more attention in.

Clark… “It’s a cornerstone of our business. You know, every day we’re bringing in raw materials and packaging that has food contact and we have to have not just full traceability but quick traceability. You know, this isn’t the days when’d you go to a drawer and find paper and try to track that through. We really need to be able to run a quick report and know exactly where we used everything, by lot code, up and down the supply chain. So it’s exciting to us to hear about some of the new technologies coming into this space. It’s going to make us even more connected with our suppliers.”

Now with the FDA Food Traceability Rule published in November 2022, food industry segments have the regulation needed to help identify the source of foodborne illness outbreaks more quickly.

Clark… “And certainly, as we look at the new FSMA section 204, it’s going to require for certain materials that we handle, you know, an even higher level of traceability and electronic traceability, and it’s something that’s going to force the hand across the industry as we wrestled with how much do we automate those types of activities, so I think we’re excited about thinking about a platform that extends throughout our entire operation and again, up and down in that supply chain.”

That’s Judy Clark of Fresh Texas.