FSMA 204, whose compliance date falls on Jan. 20, 2026, isn’t the only big food safety concern on the plates of grocery retailers and their partners all along the supply chain.

Technology, as always, is playing a crucial role in making sure those concerns don’t turn into nightmares.

New technologies are emerging very quickly with the power to completely transform manufacturing, retail and supply chain processes, said Liz Sertl, senior director of supply chain visibility for GS1 US.

Robotics and automation, artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT) advancements and ever-expanding capabilities of digital technology are some of the headliners.

Whatever the technology, Sertl said, the entire life cycle of a product – from the growing field or manufacturing plant all the way through to retail shelves and kitchens – is evolving into an integrated, fully connected network that offers new opportunities for advanced analytics and even more predictive intelligence.

“Together, these technologies can contribute to an integrated information channel connecting organizations and systems to convey data all the way from the farm to the retailer. This information creates a roadmap for track-and-traceability that far surpasses historical capabilities. End-to-end recordkeeping and data exchange between trading partners supports transparency and enables real-time, accurate monitoring of products in the supply chain for fast response to any issues that arise, such as a potential contamination.”

Many of these benefits, she added, can only be fully realized by leveraging standards to ensure effective data exchange between stakeholders.

GS1 Standards such as the Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) and Global Location Numbers (GLNs) allow for product and location identifiers, for example, to be shared in a common language that all trading partners can understand.

Expanded role for QR

“One technology that will increasingly play a key role in achieving food safety goals is the two-dimensional barcode, like a QR code, which has exponentially more data capacity than the traditional UPC code that’s been used for product identification and price lookup since the 1970s,” Sertl said.

That extra capacity, she said, gives producers new opportunities to convey expanded product information in a digital formator, whether it’s batch/lot numbers, expiration dates or something else.

When that data is based on GS1 Standards and embeds a 2D barcode with GS1 Digital Link, supply chain partners can update and share information electronically in real time.

“That means every stop along the product’s journey through the supply chain can be readily tracked and traced, establishing a clear chain of custody and providing a record that is crucial to monitoring freshness and preventing or mitigating the spread of foodborne illness through contaminated foods.”

Another technology crucial for food safety, Sertl said, is radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology, which is used for scanning to find and track individual products within larger groupings or areas, such as a manufacturing floor, warehouse, or retail shelf.

It’s a great way to quickly identify and locate products for removal, Sertl said.

“This can save precious time and resources in a crisis. The key to unlocking complete product traceability lies in full adoption of standards to support compatibility of systems across the supply chain. It is also contingent on the quality of producers’ data for clear, accurate exchange between trading partners.”

Smart solutions 

One technology surging in popularity is smart refrigeration monitoring systems, which track temperature history, said Andrew Wood, director of business development at ASI.

The systems notify users as soon as temperatures are too hot or cold, and the tracking element is helpful when it’s time to identify the root cause of a recall.

Identifying and tracking pathogens at a molecular level, Wood added, is also made possible through genomic sequencing technology, allowing for more accurate and faster responses to contamination.

Another crucial technology for food safety compliance is modified atmosphere packaging (MAP), Wood said.

During cold chain breaks when fresh produce isn’t refrigerated, MAP has been introduced to help berries and other produce items maintain freshness and quality.

“Advanced quality-control tech allows producers to measure the level of ripeness and shelf life more efficiently to ensure fruits and vegetables are at their peak quality by the time they reach the consumer’s shopping cart,” Wood said. “Overall, new technology like this gives the power back to producers, helping them oversee every step of the supply chain that was otherwise out of their control while also ensuring that food safety standards are met.”

Environmental sensing 

Speaking of produce, when it comes to maintaining product safety, post-harvest management is half the battle, Wood said.

Environmental sensing technology plays a huge role in ensuring that battle is won.

“It helps producers remotely monitor environmental conditions of massive storage facilities from anywhere in the world, in real time,” he said. “The ability to track the health and maturation rate of fresh foods as they go through the storage aspect of the cold chain can ensure the quality and safety of the product is maintained until it reaches consumers.” That said, there’s always a chance that something could still go wrong during this delicate process.

If or when it does, Wood said, technology has the potential to warn producers and handlers of the issue. And if worse comes to worse, it can help resolve a recall faster.

“Time is of the essence when it comes to pulling products off the shelves that could make someone sick. Advanced software for documentation purposes is gradually replacing antiquated paper-based recordkeeping systems, and this is something we encourage all of our clients to explore.”

It makes ASI’s job as a certification body much more streamlined, Wood said. And for producers, it can cut their audit prep time in half.

ASI is constantly experimenting with new technology to make the certification process easier for customers and more streamlined for everyone involved, Wood said.

One of the issues the company has run into is cost.

“We do our best to keep our prices fair, so in some cases, we’ll decide against certain tech if it means it would increase the cost for our customers. Google Glass was one of those tools, which isn’t on the market anymore, but we experimented with this as a tool that could allow us to perform on-site audits without physically entering the facility.”