PRODUCE SHOW DAILY
The Produce Traceability Initiative:
Developing a standardized industry approach to enhance traceability systems for the future.
Tracking activity for a $500 billion industry is complicated, whether it’s microchips or produce. The challenges related to traceability in the fresh produce space are not simple considering its sheer size and the numerous players involved with getting product from the field to the consumer. And when the issue of human health is involved, traceability becomes an even more important topic not only for the produce industry but the general public as well. From re-packed product to spot buying to lot mixing to pre-sizing, collecting accurate information for trace back and trace forward is a highly complicated process in our industry, but it doesn’t have to be. Through the use of modern day technology, the produce industry may have discovered the solution it’s been looking for.
Taking a proactive stance on addressing these challenges and the increased concern from consumers regarding food safety, the industry created the Produce Traceability Initiative (PTI) to uncover efficient and technological solutions to improving traceability. More specifically, the produce industry’s lead trade associations led the daunting task of organizing various members of the entire supply chain to represent their contingent through numerous in-person meetings spanning one year’s time. The result was a collective agreement to encourage and incorporate standardized electronic traceability and transparency industry-wide. Various retailers, wholesalers, growers, packers, and shippers from all over North America were involved with the process in deriving a plan to provide whole chain traceability in the event of a recall.
The group asked each other hard questions and worked through real market challenges to formulate a system which has already generated support from numerous trade organizations in North America. The PTI is now sponsored by United Fresh and the Produce Marketing Association and endorsed by the Food Marketing Institute, the National Grocers Association, the National Retailers Associations, and the International Foodservice Distribution Association. In Canada, the PTI is sponsored by the Canadian Produce Marketing Association, and endorsed by the Canadian Council of Grocery Distributors, and the Canadian Horticultural Council.
Capitol Hill has also taken significant notice this year with the introduction of the Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009 and the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009. The White House has put together working groups to provide commodity based guidance which will be will be used by FDA to focus on food safety and traceability.
To date, the FDA sees the positives of PTI’s capacity to enable trace back and trace forward along with the data synchronization across trading partners. But the industry still has a ways to achieve “field to fork” traceability and providing an industry-wide solution to standardized and thorough traceability. PTI demonstrates that the industry itself can come together and create solutions to address these all encompassing issues. As of now, the PTI is the leading industry voice to reaching a smart and tangible solution to thorough traceability as we continue working with legislators and government agencies to show further proof of successful adaptations.
For more information about the PTI and to learn how your company can get involved, visit www.producetraceability.org.