Food Traceability Tag

Why Traceability is the Backbone of a Global Meat Supply By Baljit Kheeva, Food Safety Systems Specialist, Meat & Poultry Ontario In an increasingly globalized food system, Traceability serves as the pillar of food safety and quality assurance. With supply chains spanning domestic and international markets, ensuring the ability to track food products from farm to table is essential—not just for consumer safety, but for maintaining trust, enabling swift recall responses, and meeting regulatory requirements. In Canada, robust traceability systems help businesses and regulatory bodies quickly identify and address food safety risks. Under the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (SFCR), food businesses—including importers, exporters, processors, distributors, and retailers—must maintain records that allow products to be traced one step forward and one step back...

Traceability Requirements in the Ontario Meat Industry By Daphne Nuys-Hall, Technical Director, Meat & Poultry Ontario Traceability is a fundamental component of food safety. In the event of a foodborne illness outbreak or contamination, the ability to trace products back to their source allows for swift identification and removal of affected products from the market. This protects consumers and minimizes the impact on public health. The traceability requirements for meat plants are outlined in the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (SFCR) and are enforced by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA). These requirements apply to a wide range of businesses within the meat industry, including slaughterhouses, processing facilities, and retail establishments, whether they are federally, provincially or municipally inspected.  Food Traceability is divided into...