the importance in using international traceability

Processing of Pelagic Fish, Trondheim, October 18, 2006 (1)www.sintef.no/ppf

Processing of Pelagic FishPolish-Norwegian Cooperation

Britannia Hotel, Trondheim, October 18, 2006

Organized by:

Eskil Forås, SINTEF Fisheries and Aquaculture, Norway :The importance in using international traceability standards in

production and export of pelagic products. Status of global traceability requirements compared with existing solutions

SINTEF Fisheries and Aquaculture

The importance in using international traceability standards in production and

export of pelagic products. Status of global traceability requirements compared with existing

solutions.

Eskil Forås, SINTEF Fisheries and Aquaculture, Norway



Content

Global food traceability requirements

Status of traceability in food industry

Presentation of food traceability standards

Why use standards


Global traceability requirements

EU’s Common Food Law

US: COOL, Bioterrorism Act

Retail requirements- Best practices



New EU legislation – Common food law

Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 of 28 January 2002:Traceability shall be established in all stages of production, processing and distribution.Food and feed business operators shall be able to identify from whom they have been supplied with a food, a feed or food related items (one-down traceability).Food and feed business operators shall be able to identify to whom their products have been supplied (one-up traceability). Procedures and systems for record keeping of “one-up/ one-down traceability” shall be established. Products placed on the market shall be adequately labelled or identified to facilitate its traceability.Food-stuffs believed or known not to be safe shall immediately be withdrawn by a food business operator. Authorities, consumers and other relevant business parties shall be informed.


Common food lawThis means;

food manufacturers placing their products on the EU–market, need to implement systems for documentation of traceability (one-up, one-down), recall routines and adequate labelling or identification of their products.

Hence; Common food law do not require internal traceability that ties incoming raw materials and ingredients to outgoing products

But; The guidance document recommend businesses to have internal traceability



Internal traceability

If a hazard is connected to 23, it is possible to recall only trade units related to 12If internal traceability is not present also trade units related to 11 (and probably many more) must be withdrawn

11

Production

12 23

22

21 11

Production

12 23

22

21


USA: Country of origin labeling (COOL)

Retailers must label groceries with Country of origin, required by lawComplex rules (must tell consumers where and how):

Country of harvestCountry of processing

All links in supply chain will be affected Retailers will push requirements down the supply chain to secure that documentation is in placeThis will demand extensive record keeping and tracking systems Source: Councel Richard E. Gutting J.R., Reed Smith



USA: US Bioterrorism ActMandatory information available 4 hours before entry on electronic formatSubmitter name, telephone, fax, e-mail, address

Transmitter name, telephone, fax, e-mail, address (if different)

Entry type and company customs identifier

Food item specification, including FDA product code, common name, quantity and lot or code number for each individual package

Identification of manufacturer, grower, farmer, (vessel)

Country of production

Country being shipped from, shipper, plans for further shipment

Anticipated arrival location, date and time

Identification of importer, owner, ultimate consignee

Identification of carrier and mode of transportation


Retail requirements- Best practice on food production, food safety, traceability, ethics, etc

ISO 9000/ ISO 22000 (Food safety)Eurep GAP (Best practice in production stage) EFSIS/BRC/IFS, etc (QA from processing to retailer)Company specific ”standards”/requirements; Carrefour, Royal Dutch Ahold, Marks & Spencer, etc



Conclusion

Traceability must be taken into consideration by all food producersAs a minimum; Keep track of what you receive and what you dispatchTo minimize economic risk you should also implement internal traceabilityMore detailed legal requirements regarding internal traceabilitywill most likely be introduced in the near futureNote that supermarkets require extensive documentation about your products. This information must be linked to the products in a reliable manner. Traceability has become a competitive issue in the food industry!


General status in the food sector

All food business claims to have full traceabilityA lot of traceability information is recordedBUT(NO companies where SINTEF has made traceability surveys could document full traceability)

Information recording/exchange is mainly made on paper systems

Infrequently use of unique ID’s based on standard identification systems (GS1)

Exchange and use of traceability information is time consuming and labour-intensive



Traceability status in seafood industry

A research project in 2005 showed that only 60% of Norwegian seafood products are traceable

Using a traceability standard would improve this situation!


Traceability standards

TraceFish - Voluntary industry standardsThe CEN (WA) standards describes:

for full-chain traceability, what data to be recorded, how and where in the captured fish chain.for full-chain traceability, what data to be recorded how and where in the farmed fish chain.how to code, transmit or to make these data available in electronic form, (XML format)

These standards cover all international requirements on traceability set by authorities and supermarkets






TraceFoodGood Traceability Guidelines



Electronic traceability standards

The Language of Traceability

Electronic exchange of traceability and product information using eXtended Markup Language (XML)


Sector specific TraceCoreXML



Norwegian implementation project

Pelagic TRAINS (Implementing TraceFood requirements) Implementing the required recording procedure Implementing the required ID systems

Developing and implementation of TraceCoreXML


Norwegian implementation project

As the main premise provider the ”Norwegian Fishermen's Sales Organization for Pelagic Fish” (NSSL) has taken a leading position in establishing the TracePelagicXML as the solution for traceability information exchange to the downstream supply chain.



Why use food traceability standards

Requirements from legislation and retailers is alredy existing but they will increase in demandsThe Trace Food standards cover all international requirements

Use of a standard gives the possibilities of implementing traceability on well documented background experienceUse of a standard is a solid basis for auditsUse of a standard give improved possibilities for implementing software systems

Programme

Welcome by Karl A. Almås, SINTEF Session 1: Norwegian-Polish trade with fish

Norwegian - Polish trade with fish - trends in the herring market. Aleksandra Buczkowska, Innovation Norway, Poland The European Market for Pelagic Products - Challenges for Norwegian and Polish Fish Industry. Børge Grønbech, Norwegian Seafood Export Council, Norway

Session 2: Technology and processing of pelagic fish The processing and consumption of pelagic fish in Poland – today and tomorrow. Piotr Bykowski, Sea Fisheries Institute, Poland Processing challenges arising from customer/market product specifications. Ragnvald L. Vågsholm, Global Fish, Norway Technological solution and possibilities to create an effective and profitable pelagic food industry. Stig Jansson, SINTEF Fisheries and Aquaculture, Norway

Session 3: Implementation of traceability in the industry

The possibilities and difficulties of implementing advanced traceability systems within the Polish fish industry. Olga Szulecka, Sea Fisheries Institute, Poland The importance in using international traceability standards in production and export of pelagic products. Status of global traceability requirements compared with existing solutions. Eskil Forås, SINTEF Fisheries and Aquaculture, Norway Demonstration of traceability systems based on European standards, by Geir Myrold, TraceTracker Innovation ASA, Norway

Session 4: Industrial cooperation between Norway and Poland

Industrial cooperation between Norway and Poland – what are the main challenges, by Krzysztof Szymborski, Rieber Foods Polska SA, Poland

Summing up. Torgeir Edvardsen, SINTEF

Organizers

the importance in using international traceability

Documents