The rise of food-related illnesses and allergies have paved the way for a growing awareness of food safety. Along with increasing demands for sustainability, this has led to a rising demand for food traceability that will enable both companies and consumers to verify the source and health of their foods.

Federal regulations on U.S. food safety have traditionally been reactive, but increasing awareness of health issues that arise from foods have led officials to focus more on preventive controls in recent years. In order to provide an accurate and transparent history of produce — from how food is grown to how it is processed and shipped — companies have realized that they must come up with newer and smarter technologies to keep both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and consumers happy.

What companies need are advanced and integrated solutions that will allow them to trace and display relevant information on every item of produce, right from the farm to the retail stand. Emerging technologies in this field are now focusing on getting this information in hours instead of days so that companies can improve their reporting capabilities and prove their responsibility for their consumers.

Earlier this year, the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) released a new supplement about this increasing focus on food traceability and how it can be pragmatically achieved by companies across the industry. IFT conducted three Traceability Research Summits with 50 experts who convened to discuss the importance, need and ways to achieve this improved traceability through multistakeholder and cross-sector collaboration.

Previously, the IFT had conducted pilot studies on the subject for the FDA and the National Center for Food Protection and Defense, focusing on interoperability and achievability of traceability technology. Food supply chains can be long and complicated, and the thought of implementing traceability can be quite a daunting one.

But in order to protect public health, and win government approval and consumer faith, companies are now realizing the need to invest in better technology to trace their food sources. While the initial investment can be considerable, it will eventually lead to better trace the paths of products, improve quality at every stage, and prove to consumers that they are acting responsibly in all sourcing activities.

Even as governments across the globe are working on implementing new regulations on increased food traceability, industry leaders have responded to this demand already. They have realized that this will not only help prevent health risks for their consumers, but also go a long way to improve their sustainability standards.

Now companies can offer optimal nutritional values and the highest quality in their products, exceeding both consumer expectations and government requirements easily. What likely started as a reaction to bio-terrorism soon gave way to ensuring safety standards for foods.

When President Barack Obama signed the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) into law in 2011, it became a key driver for improved traceability in all sectors of the food industry. With gradual maturing of the process, traceability and public health protection is becoming increasingly easier. The sharing of key data and the unique product identification methods have paved the way for definite transparency of information here.

Investing in advanced traceability software will aid companies in keeping ahead of the sustainability race and wooing aware consumers, not to mention beating all government regulations ahead of time. This will aid in faster production and better goods that have undergone the testing phase before competitors.

But the advantages do not stop here. According to Dr. Dan Hale, Texas A&M University professor in the Department of Animal Science and Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, the use of advanced genetic tools and technology will lead to feed efficiency, which will in turn lead to efficiency of production. He mentioned that traceability will become an effective tool to increase yield manifold and will definitely see considerable increases in the near future.

Whether it is to comply with regulations or abide by individual ethics, implementing traceability processes will help companies improve their own performance in the long run. Also, it is not just about establishing a process but setting up a system of regular reviews to improve and enhance traceability capabilities.