EtiNET® Web platform for traceability in the food chains: a regional scale implementation for quality insurance and food safety control in Italy

Increasing globalization of our food supply combined with recent outbreaks of foodborne disease has heightened concerns over food safety issues around the globe. In response to these growing concerns, both by government and consumers, many food chain stakeholders are looking at food traceability as a means to restore confidence in the food supply (food safety) and manage the products quality. Traceability, which allows for the tracking of food products through all steps of production, distribution, and sales, can provide information on the nature, origin, and quality of a food. This paper reports the Marche Region (Italy) project called SiTRA, aiming to provide food chain stakeholders with a Web platform managing traceability for the main regional food products. Consumers can identify the SiTRA traced products by means a Regional Brand (QM Quality guaranteed by Marche) embedded in the product label, reporting the traceability code to access the Web for traceability information of the product. SITRA platform is currently tracing 8 large food chains (fresh milk, bread, pasta, fresh fish, olive oil, wine, pigs and cattle) all over the Region. Organisational and technology aspects of the platform implementation are reported.