Paper Review
TRACEABILITY SYSTEMS
Alyssa Kaye S. Mojar
Vianece Jasmine S. Olazo
Jaderick P. Pabico
Traceability is said to be the heart of food safety. It is seen as a very important enabler of food trade in the global scale (Welt and Blanchfield, 2012). On the most basic and simplest form, traceability is the ability to identify all necessary information regarding a specified product from production to distribution (Welt and Blanchfield, 2012; Bechini et al., n.d.; Karipppacheril, Rios, and Srivastava, 2011).
The European Union (EU) has the most significant contribution to the background of traceability systems. Most traceability systems are rooted on the standards set forth by EU for their own traceability systems. The most substantial influence of EU is the definition of traceability according to Article 3 of the EU General Food Regulation:
“Traceability is the ability to trace and follow a food, feed, food-producing animal or substance intended to be, or expected to be incorporated into a food or feed, through all stages of production, processing, and distribution.” (Bechini et al, n.d.; Directorate-General for Health and Consumer Protection European Commission, 2007)
Karippacheril, Rios, and Srivastava (2011) simplified this definition by stating that traceability is “the ability to follow the movement of food through specified stage(s) of production, processing, and distribution” (Codex Alimentarius Commission, 2006). Moreover, they added that a traceability tool must be able to identify where the food came from and where the food went. This means that a traceability system must have information about the product from production until distribution in accordance to the requirements and objectives of the authorities.
Traceability system was said to have developed from the field of industrial engineering where it was perceived as a tool for guaranteeing that the process of production and the products are quality (Karippacheril, Rios, and Srivastava, 2011). Furthermore, according to Samarasinghe at al. (2009), it was the product of combining engineering methodology standards with adjustments done in line with what is nationally accepted and required.
Traceability systems first served as an information system that is important in order to trace the history of a product (Karippacheril, Rios and Srivastava, 2011).Another way to look at traceability system is as a record-keeping tool that stores information about the path taken by a certain product from the supplier to the businesses. All necessary pieces of information regarding the processes the product has undergone are also recorded (Bechini et al., n.d.).
Looking at the benefits bring forth by a traceability system, it can also be considered as a risk management tool for it helps food establishments and the authorities pull out products that have been reported to be unsafe (Directorate-General for Health and Consumer Protection, European Commission, 2007).
Characteristics of a Traceability System
There may be a number of traceability systems requirements and definitions, but there are certain characteristics that should be observed on a traceability system.
Samarasinghe et al. (2009) mentioned that a traceability system is basically characterized by three parameters: (1) space - a traceable location must be included; (2) time – the time and date must be definite; and (3) volume – the quantity of the product(s) must be known.
There are various ways on how a traceability system is built. However, it is necessary that all systems include identification of the products and a way to distinguish these by batch, information on the date and place of the products’ movement and transformation, and a channel to link these data (Bechini et al., n.d.).
Bechini et al. (n.d.) further said that the most important part of a traceability system is its ability to trace lots (space) and activities. He said that a traceability system must be able to do both tracking and tracing. By tracking, the user follows the downstream path of the product; on the other hand, tracing is used to detect causes of problems by determining the origin and characteristics of the products by following its upstream path on the supply chain.
Traceability systems, when it was first introduced, varies from company to company. But as time passed, it is important for traceability systems be integrated with the processes a product goes through, and the companies it is passed on to (Samarasinghe, 2009).