Agriculture Sector: Does My Operation Need Traceability?

Traceability is the process of tracking an identified product (and its attributes) as it moves between locations. Traceability can apply to any product or living organism, from food to automobile parts.

Why does my operation need a traceability system?

Farm businesses need to know:

• where their products came from
• what was done on site
• where their products are going or who they sold them to immediately after they leave their facility

Producers are being asked more often to provide records of these facts. For example, a foreign market may require traceability-related documentation. Even local customers may want proof of due diligence. Or, a producer may be asked to justify a claim on a particular product.

How does it work?

For an effective traceability system to work it needs these key elements:

• Product identification: Examples include: livestock ear tag and the corresponding age of the animal; a lot number for a raspberry crop and its associated spray records; the production date, lot numbers of inputs, and packaging or label information

• Identification of premises: Examples include: farms, grain elevators, auction barns, warehouses and other sites that handle products

• Recording movements of product within a facility and between premises: Examples include: receiving to storage, from the farm to a processing facility, or from a processing facility to retail

Does traceability apply to me? Three questions to ask

1. How quickly could you find information on products you shipped off the farm? Do you know where that information is kept?
   
   
2. Do you have accurate information at your fingertips on all production and operational activities your facility conducts? For example:
   
   Crops - yields, nutrient application, harvest times
   Livestock - identification numbers, medication use, feed type and source
   
   
3. If there were a disease outbreak or a product recall, could you produce the above information in a way that would lower a potential threat to your customers and the reputation of your business?