If your goal is to implement the Produce Traceability Initiative (PTI) in your business, then you are aware of the industry-wide effort to create a process to trace produce cases throughout the supply chain. The PTI offers an implementation “toolkit” to help you reach your goal.
On the PTI webpage you can find specifics about each one of the seven steps, or milestones, toward implementation, including the date on which each step should be reached.
One aspect of the initiative deals with how information on cases of produce must barcoded- this is Step #5 of the PTI action plan. As the produce moves from the field into the supply chain, each packer must have the systems in place to encode the GTIN and lot numbers from each case of produce in a barcode. Factors affecting the labeling include using existing GS1 standards, figuring out what should be on the food label and what should be on the case label, what information should be human readable, and how to accommodate varying box sizes.
PTI offers “additional information” for your review.
How is this initiative affecting you? Will you be able to achieve electronic traceability for every case of produce by the year 2012? We’d like to hear about the labeling issues you are facing, so please leave a comment!
Labeling & Coding News is the online industry insider from ID Technology, EPI , Panther, Greydon, and Code Tech Labeling & Coding product brands of ProMach.
