- Regulations and News
-
Tracing back what you eatApril 21, 2010
Barcode system will enable buyers to see the origin of what they're about to buy
- Published: 21/04/2010 at 12:00 AM
- Newspaper section: Database
Consumers will be able to gain full product information before they buy, thanks to an advanced barcode system expected to be in place by early next year.
When scanning the barcode on the product, consumers will be told not only know the price but also information on who grew the product, and/or where it originated from in order to boost buyer confidence. This system should also help strengthen Thailand's comparative differentiate position in the global food market.Next February, consumers who buy fresh products in some modern trade markets will have access to more details about the origin of goods from some 600 Thai food producers ranging from chicken and seafood to fresh fruit and vegetables, according to Niwat Suthemechaikul, Secretary General of the National Bureau of Agricultural Commodity and Food Standards (ACFS) under Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives.
When the consumer scans a barcode on the appropriate product packaging, the display will relay the product name, price and weight and provide relevant information about each batch, including which farm it came from, where it was processed and its current location and temperature.
This is part of a pilot program to use food traceability technology to the origin of food and other agricultural products by using Electronic Product Code from GS1, a global standard organisation used by more than 100 countries.
To start off the project, the Ministry of Agriculture will work closely with IBM and FXA to add on food traceability technology by implementing a traceability server under the EPCIS (Electronic Product Code Information Services) standard of the National Bureau of Agricultural Commodity and Food Standards (ACFS), Department of Fisheries, Department of Livestock, and Department of Agricultural Extension.
And the ACFS will define farm identification numbers in EPCIS standard code mapping with Thailand's farmer code and field number system which helps consumers in other countries who are buying Thai products to trace their source. This will also help small farmers or food producers to gain more opportunities in the international market.
Growers and producers will use unique serial numbers stored on sensors to share important product information.
This pilot will be carried out over one year with a nine-million-baht budget and will involve 600 Thai producers who have attained Good Agricultural Practice standard.
The government expects that within three years, at least 70 percent of the country's 500,000 farmers will have adopted the system.
"The project will help both local and international buyers gain confidence in buying from Thai food producers," said Niwat.
"For example, if there is a problem with contaminated food, sellers can identify and recall only the affected line, which will help to reduce waste. Government authorities and food sellers could immediately pinpoint the exact farm on which the tainted food was grown and quickly arrange a targeted recall to minimise the number of people affected."
Meanwhile, Theera Wongsamut, Thailand's Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives, said this pilot project is one part of the ministry's plan to establish the kingdom as Kitchen of the World.
"Thailand is one of the world's largest producers and exporters of agricultural products, with an export value of 560 billion baht in 2009. The kingdom must continue to improve our food safety standards to meet, or even exceed, the global market's requirements and enhance and increase our exporters' competitiveness in the international food industry," he emphasised.
Arporna Paul Sribhibhadh, Executive Chairman of FXA, which owns the OpsSmart food traceability solution, said that with this project, Thailand becomes one of the first countries in the world to adopt EPCIS standard for food traceability, which will help stand out in the global market.
Moreover, it will help add value to Thailand's products. There is evidence from food exporters who already use food traceability that they can add five to 10 percent to the price tag, which consumers are happy to pay for because the products come with a guarantee that they comply with food regulations of developed nations such as Japan, the US and in Europe.
The project consultant is CAT and use of OpsSmart will store and link Thailand's farmer codes, while data fields covering product information, shipment details and manufacturer and exporter data will be stored on IBM's InfoSphere Traceability Server.
IBM technology adheres to EPCIS standard for information sharing, which means any partner using an EPCIS-compliant system can access all product information.
Paul Chang, Strategy and Business Development, IBM Software Group, said this system should boost Thailand's ambitions when selling to lucrative US and European markets.
Traceability is becoming de facto for food safety in the global food supply chain.
According to the United Nations, $48 billion worth of food is thrown away every year in the US alone. This figure could be reduced with the ability to conduct more targetted recalls.
In the wake of well-publicised outbreaks of illnesses traced to food, costing $152 billion a year in US alone with more than 76 million food-related illnesses and 5,000 deaths a year, governments around the world are proposing more stringent regulations to better protect consumers.
Moreover, the US is currently considering enacting a Food Traceability Bill which is more stringent than those in place in Japan and the European Union.
"Food Traceability not only adds more value or aids marketing, it also provides other benefits to help retailers manage their inventories, aid freshness management, enhance product movement and streamline supply chain management," Chang concluded.