SMART PACKAGING & PRINTED ELECTRONICS
New ambient IoT food safety initiative
Wiliot, a pioneer in ambient Internet of Things (IoT) technology, has launched a major food safety initiative aimed at revolutionising supply chain transparency and traceability. The initiative is designed to help the food industry meet the upcoming FSMA 204 compliance requirements through the implementation of ambient IoT technology.
Wiliot’s battery-free ambient IoT Pixels can attach to any food product or packaging to connect it to the internet and embed it with intelligence. Image: Wiliot
Ambient IoT is a battery-free wireless technology that is being incorporated in multiple wireless standards, including Bluetooth, 5G Advanced, 6G and Wi-FI– allowing food products to be connected to the internet and the power of AI at a fraction of the cost of legacy technologies. The ambient IoT enables a new real-time inventory paradigm that is not only beneficial for food safety and FSMA compliance, but is also key to more efficient store operations, surviving and thriving in the face of omni-channel competition and competing on quality as well as value. As part of this new initiative, Wiliot is partnering with food industry leaders iFoodDS and Trustwell to integrate its ambient IoT data and technology into both companies’ safety and compliance platforms. "Empowered by the unprecedented capabilities of the ambient IoT, the entire food industry can move beyond QR codes, advance shipping notices and electronic documentation. Instead, thenew traceability paradigm is infinitely faster, entirely real-time and drastically reduces the cost of manual labour and technology infrastructure," says Steve Statler, CMO of Wiliot. "We look forward to working with iFoodDS and Trustwell to help some of the country’s largest food companies both meet FSMA 204 requirements, while simultaneously adding more value in terms of sustainability, freshness and operational efficiency that advances the entire food industry." Trustwell’s software and consulting solutions are focused on their mission to increase transparency across the supply chain, giving food companies the tools they need to remain always ahead of industry regulations. As innovators and leaders, Trustwell brings together two products, FoodLogiQ and Genesis, to go beyond compliance and set a new standard for safety, transparency and quality in the food industry. "The incorporation of Wiliot’s ambient IoT data into our Trustwell Connect Platform will empower brands to have visibility across the supply chain with a trusted single source of truth, fully traceable, compliant and data-driven," comments Julie McGill, Vice President of Supply Chain Strategy and Insights at Trustwell. "More than 2,500 brands around the world rely on Trustwell to manage their regulatory requirements with more than 200 million critical tracking events recorded using our FoodLogiQ Traceability software. The incorporation of Wiliot’s ambient IoT data into our tech solution is going to enable us to take food safety to a new level of traceability with precise execution."
Transparency and traceability across the entire supply chain
iFoodDS enables food companies to provide consumers with traceable, nutritious and high-quality products. Their integrated solutions for traceability, quality and food safety offer businesses enhanced visibility and insights into their supply chains, helping to minimise food waste and improve inventory quality. "FDA’s Final Traceability Rule, FSMA 204, provides an important framework for the food industry," says Andrew Kennedy, Principal Traceability Advisor at iFoodDS, "The food industry can leverage this framework in conjunction with Wiliot’s Ambient IoT technology and iFoodDS software to significantly enhance food safety, food freshness and operational efficiency. This game changing technology will help usher in the new era of smarter food safety." Modernising food safety is critical to the health and well-being of people around the world. It is estimated that roughly one in six Americans gets sick from foodborne illness each year. Of those people, 128,000 are hospitalised and 3,000 lose their lives to foodborne disease. The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) took decisive action in November 2022, when it finalised its FSMA Rule 204 which laid the groundwork for end-to-end food traceability by focusing on tracking certain foods at every step across the supply chain and expanding beyond "one-up, one-back" traceability. The goal of Rule 204 is to create visibility within the supply chain to enable a better response to foodborne illnesses, contamination and other public health and safety issues. The food industry has until January 2026 to comply with the new rule. "This goal of better protecting consumers cannot be achieved without creating greater transparency and traceability throughout the entire chain of food production distribution system," says Frank Yiannas. The former Deputy Commissioner of the FDA and one of the authors of FSMA Rule 204 now serves as a strategic advisor to Wiliot. "Wiliot, iFoodDS and Trustwell are uniquely equipped to make this transparency a reality faster and more efficiently thanks to their collective embrace of a new technology paradigm unlike anything we’ve seen before."
Better consumer protection through real-time data
Wiliot’s battery-free ambient IoT Pixels can attach to any food product or packaging to connect it to the internet and embed it with intelligence. Once attached, products push out item or case-level information about their location, temperature, carbon footprint and more – equipping food retailers and companies with the high-definition realtime data that is now required. Wiliot is already working withi FoodDS Trustwell on a series of FSMA 204 compliance pilot projects with some of the country’s largest food companies. The depth and breadth of these collaborations will continue to scale throughout 2024, ahead of the January 2026 FSMA compliance deadline.
www.wiliot.com