How Food And Beverage Packaging Innovations Are Improving Traceability And Security

By Neil Farmer, Owner/Proprietor and Managing Director, Neil Farmer Associates

The food supply chain is becoming increasingly complex and demanding in terms of regulatory requirements. Traceability and security in packaging is now a very important topic. In batch production, it goes without saying that packagers should always have procedures in place to manage and effectively control the traceability of their products. There are relatively-simple methods available to achieve this, including barcodes and date or job numbers via labels on outers of corrugated packs and cartons. Then, there are reel-fed labels which can be attached to the products themselves. These are becoming more prevalent and widely used. The technology of radio frequency identification (RFID) has also greatly aided the traceability and security of food and beverages. Tear tapes and labels are ideal for carrying overt, covert, and anti-counterfeiting technologies across all packaging formats. These technologies can also provide evidence of tampering by demonstrating whether a pack has been opened or pilfered with. All these technologies illustrate how far the packaging industry has come in dealing with these issues.

However, there are greater problems which the industry has to face. The large volumes of imports from Asian countries to Europe — particularly in food and vegetables — and the problems of hazards, food recalls, and wastage has highlighted the need for improved- traceability standards and security in European markets. It has been estimated that £12 billion ($17.8 billion USD) of food is thrown away in the UK each year. If this figure is replicated around the world, it is damaging to all future sustainability targets.

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