Episode 2: Food Transparency, Interoperability, Innovation, and Disruption: Reimagining Food Traceability with Thomas Burke

Hello, visibility enthusiasts! Welcome to the Beyond Visibility Lounge, the podcast that explores the seen and unseen world of the supply chain, logistics, transportation, and traceability. Join your hosts, Iliriana Kacaniku and Ron Volpe, who are diving into the topic of traceability in food supply chains.   In this episode, they talk to Thomas Burke, an expert in food traceability, about the impact that traceability and visibility have on improvement of food safety. He also explores the alignment of global systems in food traceability and the challenges and opportunities in technological adoption. Throughout the conversation, Thomas shares his insights on interoperability, lessons learned from the Global Dialogue on Seafood Traceability, and the need for standardization and data capture in achieving real-time end-to-end traceability. In this conversation, Thomas Burke discusses the importance of food traceability and the challenges in implementing it. He emphasizes the need for disruption in the hardware and data capture space to drive innovation. Burke also highlights the importance of making food traceability standards accessible to developers and fostering global stakeholder engagement. He concludes by discussing the democratization of technology applications for food traceability and the goal of ensuring safe and sustainable food for future generations.

Takeaways:

• Traceability is crucial in the food industry as it allows for better food safety and quality control.
• Interoperability is a key challenge in achieving effective traceability, and standardization initiatives play a crucial role in addressing this challenge.
• The adoption of advanced technologies in traceability is still disparate, and there is a need for equal access and adoption across the supply chain.
• Data capture and the utilization of artificial intelligence can enhance traceability and provide valuable insights for improving food safety.
• Collaboration and stakeholder involvement are essential in developing effective traceability systems and standards.
• Fostering data capture space can drive innovation in food traceability.
• Making food traceability standards accessible to developers is crucial for encouraging their involvement in solving traceability challenges.
• Democratizing technology applications for food traceability requires the development of new business models.

Beyond Visibility Lounge is produced by the Open Solve Studio, in collaboration with TraceChain.  ZE-BOX America for their invaluable support in bringing this episode to life, supported the production of this episode by opening up the podcast recording studio.  

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction

01:30 Thomas Burke's Background and Passion for Food Traceability

10:20 Importance of Traceability in the Food Space

21:28 Alignment of Global Systems in Food Traceability

34:51 Lessons on Interoperability in Food Traceability

46:44 Mastering Traceability in the Food Industry

53:00 Challenges and Opportunities in Technological Adoption

01:03:58 Fostering Disruption in the Hardware and Data Capture Space

01:04:56 Making Food Traceability Standards Accessible to Developers

01:05:50 Cultivating Global Stakeholder Engagement

01:07:45 Democratizing Technology Applications for Food Traceability

01:08:31 Summary

Sources: 

Burden of Foodborne Illness: Findings, Center for Disease Control and Prevention

Tracking and Tracing of Food, Food and Drug Administration 

Acronyms mentioned in this podcast:GDST - Global Dialogue on Seafood Traceability 

IFT - Institute of Food technologists

CTE - Critical Tracking Event

XKCD -  A webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language.

FSMA - Food Safety Modernization Act

GFSI  - Global Food Safety Initiative 

Sunrise 2027 - the date that the global supply chain industry has set to make the transition to accepting 2D barcodes at point-of-sale (POS) or point-of-care (POC) — referred to as Sunrise 2027. 

EPCS 2.0 - GS1 Electronic Product Code Information Services