In the previous post (Where is the Data – Certified Food), EkaLore focused on the importance of the data delivered with fruit, grain, or vegetables via their labels. More specifically, the labels and certifications that distinguish conventional fruit, grain, or meat from their organic counterparts and account for value to consumers (and regulators!)
Non-GMO, Non-BGH, and Never Frozen, not to mention other distinctions concerning how the food was grown, collected, or preserved, have gained prominence. Non-food products such as supplements (homeopathic, veterinarian), regulated substances (CBD, hemp, marijuana, absinthe), or nutraceuticals certifications have their own labeling requirements. Additional cultural and religious certifications can also rely on these data (kosher, halal, vegan/vegetarian, cultural practices (ginseng, “Kobe beef,” hickory-smoked, wild-harvested)). Other declarations and tracking relate to food processing and manufacturing (facilities with nuts’ processing, slaughtering processes, canning, or pre-cooking).
These types of food certifications and claims rely on a disjointed set of government, industry, cooperative, and individual processes. The range from government-certified to self-certified presents those ‘down the chain’ with new risk exposures. In the Supply Chain of Data, the ‘downstream’ consumers have new requirements to collect, organize, retain, and access multiple types of data. The processing requirements in a data cycle might encompass paper documents, attestations, lab results, third-party testimonials, and many other generators or providers of data. The data represents everything (with illustrative data elements) from:
· Authentication (legal identity, location, and branding),
· Timing data (dates/times, places/geolocations, data process),
· Product-related data (seed lines, measurements of characteristics, weights, contents (such as water, protein, or sugars)),
· Process descriptive data (free-range animals, wild/domesticated, harvesting techniques, isolation) [including conformance statements for standards, practices, and methods]
· Preparation (wax coated, direct-to-outlet, humane handling),
· Lot tracking and related product freshness dating, and
· Chain of custody (example of grower -> cooperative -> collection/aggregation/pooling -> packaging -> distribution -> delivery -> retail -> buyer with many variations to jurisdiction and custom).
The "Supply Chain of Data" is a complex network of data transactions that parallels the physical movement of a product from origin to consumption. It requires the collaboration of all stakeholders to maintain data integrity and to ensure that the data remains linked to the physical product at all stages of the supply chain.
Many historical, cultural, and marketing factors apply to the wildly varying data chains. Modern practices are compelled by the economics of brand value (creating a value for conformance to standards and practices), compliance (regulatory and legal requirements), and consumer expectations (perceived qualities.) Retailers and everyone else in the Supply Chain must have custody of sufficient data to demonstrate they took the care and attention to provide a product as represented.
The team at EkaLore has helped companies in many facets of managing the Supply Chain of Data. If you’d like to read additional blog posts in this series, you can find them at www.ekalore.com/ars
If you’d like to talk to a senior analyst about a Supply Chain of Data issue at your organization, send a note to sales@ekalore.com
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