WO2018095958A1

WO2018095958A1 - System and method for monitoring and tracing food products

Info

Publication number: WO2018095958A1
Application number: PCT/EP2017/080021
Authority: WO
Inventors: Rafael Luiz SILVA; Carlos Augusto RIOS
Original assignee: Sig Technology Ag
Priority date: 2016-11-23
Filing date: 2017-11-22
Publication date: 2018-05-31
Also published as: BR102016027528A2

Abstract

The invention refers to a system and a method for monitoring and tracing food products which register information on the identification of raw materials and packages for food products, batches of food products, transport boxes and pallets for product distribution, thus enabling consumers to access all that information regarding the specific product acquired, so as to trace and confirm, among other purposes, the origin of that product.

Description

SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MONITORING AND TRACING FOOD PRODUCTS

The present invention refers to a system and a method to monitor and trace food products, thus enabling consumers to access all information concerning the specific product acquired, so that they can trace and confirm the origin of such product, among other information, and also enabling manufacturers to have control over their production. The system and the method according to this invention are applied to the filling of food products such as dairies, juices, beverages in general, tomato-based, convenience food or any other type of product, be it aseptic filling or not; the filling packages can be made of carton, plastic, glass or any other type of material suitable for the food industry.

Description of the technique status

In the food industry sector, we can note the growing addition of preservatives, additives and chemical products in general to industrially processed food, so as to ensure longer durability and shelf life, better appearance and texture, among others. There are also cases of addition of chemical products to food in order to make it yield more, increase bulk, and reduce the cost of the final processed food. That is quite common in the dairy industry.

There are also instances where the crops of raw materials for food products receive doses of agrotoxin, or cases when the animals producing the raw materials are fed on artificial or undue food which may be present in the final product, such as milk, eggs or meat, thus interfering in its quality. However, those chemical products contained in animal feed, or even in processing for the production of the final food, may be harmful to human health, especially children's. Therefore, at the purchase decision-making moment at the supermarket, food product consumers may want to make sure that the raw materials of that product are provided by suppliers assuring a certain quality, mainly when it comes to consumers posing some kind of constraint, such as vegetarians and vegans, those who will consume solely organic goods, or even those who are intolerant to certain types of food.

Another recurrent concern about industrialized food are the sanitary and hygienic conditions featured by the plants where such food products are processed and filled, as well as the raw materials used in package manufacturing. All those parameters can interfere in the quality of a given product. In view of the reasons expounded above, it is desirable that product manufacturers and/or suppliers have access to information on the origin, formulation and quality, both of the product to be consumed and of the package itself, which is in contact with the product. Such information is important in order to help food suppliers prove that their products comply with all the regulations regarding hygiene, quality and expiry date, foreseen by the sanitary surveillance agency, or to enable suppliers to trace products of the same batch presenting some sort of contamination issue, thus posing health hazards to consumers, and to carry out a product recall, even before they reach consumers.

Some documents on the technique status suggesting tracing food products are already known. Patent document CN203102371U refers to a tracing system for information on the production line of dairy products based on the Internet. The system comprises an array of subsystems connected to each other by a net, such as a subsystem for the acquisition and registration of information on raising milk cattle, a subsystem for the acquisition and registration of information on the production of raw milk, a subsystem for the acquisition and registration of information on the processing of dairy products, a subsystem for the acquisition and registration of information on the distribution of dairy products, and a subsystem for the acquisition and registration of information on the sales of dairy products. In addition, a tracing subsystem is used to gather information regarding aspects of cow-raising, production, distribution, sales and alike, and to receive search requests, and return search results, including backward and/or forward information. Bar code technology, RFID technology, EPC technology, wireless sensor net technology, and GPS technology are used to view information on the production line of dairy products. Nevertheless, this system does not allow a consumer to obtain specific information on the content and origin of an individual product by reading a specific code for that product. Besides, the system of this document does not trace or monitor information on the packages of dairy products, and neither does it monitor information on productivity, operation and performance of the equipment used in production.

Document IN1435/KOL/2012, in its turn, features a product tracing system from its origin to filling, for monitoring by consumers and/or the Quality Assurance team. A packing machine of the referred product applies, on the package of the product, an exclusive pre-printed QR code containing information on the referred package and/or the filled product. A scanning device is configured to scan the mentioned QR code, and a serving system is configured to connect the packaging machine with the remote monitoring device on the Internet or Intranet. In the system, the exclusive QR code is printed on the package to be scanned right before or right after the respective package is packed by the packing machine. The scanned information will be sent to the Server, from which the product information will be transmitted to the Quality Assurance team, the original manufacturer of the packing equipment or the final consumer to operate the removing monitoring device, according to the need. This system does not allow monitoring and tracing all steps after the product is filled in the package, thus not enabling recall for defective products, or spotting other products of the same batch which may present a similar defect. In order for that to happen, it would be necessary to reread the QR code of each package at each step of transportation and distribution of the product, which would prove unfeasible. That is due to the fact that the packages are stored in closed boxes containing several packages, and then placed on pallets or in containers also closed for distribution, which would prevent reading the individual QR code of each box.

Document CN201853243U also suggests a system that enables tracing the entire material process in the production line, by resorting to RFID tags applied on the material, and RFID readers displayed at manufacturer, logistics and distributor. A data center is connected to all reading and writing devices by a net. This system involves very high costs and high complexity, once it takes many RFID readers and an RFID tag for each product, both expensive elements. Therefore, this system is economically unfeasible, when it comes to mass and low cost products, involving many steps in the production and distribution chain.

Patent document CN102663595A suggests storing product information from producer to consumer; however, that should require several readings of a code applied to the product, one at each processing and distribution step, for the storage of the respective information of each step, which also makes the system costly, complex and not very efficient. In addition, the document does not suggest the generation of a specific code for each individual product.

None of the documents of the technique status suggests technology that enables consumers and manufacturers of food products to have direct access to traced information from the source of raw materials used in a specific product and its package, to the distribution of the final product, passing by real-time monitoring of the production line by simply reading a specific product code applied on the package.

Purposes of the Invention

One of the aims of the present invention is to devise a system and a method for monitoring and tracing food products that can provide individualized information, such as the origin of raw materials and packaging materials, formulation, expiry, dates, processing and filling steps and equipment, storage, transportation and distribution of the product. All information should be available in an easy and friendly manner for the supplier of the food product, its filler, and consumers, thus enabling full recall for defective products. Another purpose of the present invention is to provide a system and a method that can play the roles described above in a simple manner at fair costs that are feasible even for products of low added value.

Brief Description of the Invention

Summarized Description of the Figures

The present invention is described below in further details, based on the implementation example represented in the figures. The figures show:

Fig. 1 a schematic view of the product tracing system according to the invention integrating the entire productive, logistic and distribution chain;

Fig. 2 a schematic view of part of the product tracing system according to the invention applied to the production process;

Fig. 3 a schematic view of part of the product tracing system according to the invention applied to the expedition process; and

Fig. 4 a block diagram featuring the access to traced information on the product by means of the tracing system according to the invention.

Detailed Description of the Figures

Figure 1 shows an example of a productive, logistic and distribution chain normally applied to food products, such as dairy products, including manufacturers of the food product itself and of the packages, up to the trucks, for distribution of the products to sales points. Although the example described here applies to the dairy industry, it must be clear that the system and the method according to this invention are applied to the filling of food products such as dairies, juices, beverages in general, tomato-based, convenience food or any other type of product, be it aseptic filling or not;; the packages may be made of carton, plastic, glass or any other type of material suitable for the food industry.

The food product plant is usually associated with one or more milk cattle farms (not illustrated), from which the milk used as raw material is obtained. Other inputs, such as chocolate, sugar yeast, among others, may be acquired from other suppliers. The raw materials are then transported to the plant, where they are processed so as to generate the food product to be consumed, for instance, long life milk, yogurt, chocolate- flavored milk, butter, etc. The system according to the invention can add information on the source farm where the milk used as raw material for each product was extracted. For such, at milk extraction moment, certain information must be recorded, such as farm identification and location, extraction date, or even storage temperature, among other information requested by the milk producer and/or the dairy product manufacturer. This information must be recorded and stored, so as to be available and accessible for the food product plant. This information can be provided to the manufacturer automatically by means of interconnected shared servers, and can be made available for the consumers of the final food product, so that they can know what farm or region the milk used in that product came from, and thus be able to decide better on the product that meets their personal needs regarding quality and origin.

Prior to reaching the equipment for the production of the food product itself at the food plant, the milk may be submitted to laboratory testing for the assurance of quality, formulation, fat rate, among other aspects, and to previous processing steps, such as UHT pasteurization, carried out in machinery that may be located inside the plant or at other premises. All the data obtained in the analyses, as well as all the information about the machinery where the previous processing has taken place, and the respective date and time can be registered for later feed in the monitoring and tracing system according to the invention. As in Figure 2, which shows the information flow of the food product throughout the productive process at the food plant, all raw materials received are identified and registered on a Server, featuring information on origin, for instance, with data about the farm, delivery batch, delivery date, extraction date on the farm, among others. In case the raw material, milk, for instance, has been submitted to stages of laboratory testing and previous processing, as described above, such information and data are also placed on the Server. This information is usually obtained via optical reading.

The raw materials are then sent, usually through pipelines, to the food product manufacturing equipment, such as mixers, tanks, pasteurizers, etc, where they are processed until the final food product is ready. [At this stage of production inside the tanks and other equipment, or even during transportation of the food product or its raw materials up to production stage, or from there to the filling stage, in-line real-time measurements can be taken on the quality of the product and of the raw materials. The collected data are also registered by the system according to] the invention, for further viewing by consumers and manufacturers. In addition, all information concerning the equipment used, and processing date and time are registered and sent to the Server or system database, where global efficiency data on the manufacturing equipment should also be processed. That is due to the fact that information on performance, efficiency, losses, productivity, operating time and downtime of the equipment is also registered. The final product is then assigned a batch number associated with the information described above, including the source of all raw materials of the [product and quality checks throughout processing, prior to filling]. After the processing stages, the food product is sent to a filling machine, where it is packed to be reached and acquired by consumers. The packages are produced separately, by a package manufacturer, placed in transport boxes and shipped to the food plant. For package production, the package manufacturer is supplied with raw materials, such as paper, cardboard, plastic, aluminum, caps, among others, which are processed in equipment and machinery inside this plant, for later distribution to the food plants. The packages are stored in boxes inside which they are shipped to the food plants. Each box is assigned a printed batch number corresponding to those packages.

As described for the food plant, the package plant also registers information on the source of the raw materials and on the production process of those packages, including equipment used, manufacturing time, among other data. The boxes to transport the packages to the food plant feature an RFID tag, containing all the information registered at the plant regarding those packages, so that the food plant can access it automatically by simply reading the RFID tag, or that the package manufacturer can identify them, in the event of theft or misdirection from their final destination. Such information is also useful for the package plant itself, since they enable crosschecking of the monthly, weekly and daily production in the production line.

As shown in Figure 2, already at the food plant, when the packages are placed in the filling machines, the information on the RFID tag is read by an RFID reader, and submitted to a Server of the monitoring and tracing system of the present invention, as shown in Figure 1. The batch number of the final food product to be filled by the filling machine is assigned by the monitoring and tracing system. That batch of the food product is thus associated with the batch of the package it will be filled in. This information on the food product and the package is fed to a product database, so that each line in this database features all the data regarding the package and the content of a specific individual product.

The system according to the invention has a QR code generator associated with the filling machine. This QR code generator creates a specific and individual QR code associated with a line in the product database, and thus a package with an individual food product. This individual QR code is printed on the respective package corresponding to that line in the database with non-removable ink. [This ink may be, for instance, wax-based, with no need for UV application for drying]. That enables access to all information on that individual product simply by means of a QR code reader. Thus, a consumer of the food product should be able to trace all information, from source of the raw materials involved (such as farm or region where the milk was extracted, date of extraction, laboratory tests, product formulation, stages of previous processing, processing and production equipment) and of the package, by simply reading the QR code. In addition, the use of non-removable ink can hinder package counterfeit.

The product database containing the information on the individual products can be accessed via a Server of the cloud type, which provides a portal with data to which consumers of the food product are directed automatically after the QR code is read, and where they can view individual tracing information on that product.

Still in the production chain of the food product, shown in Figures 1 and 2, to which the system according to the invention is applied, the packages filled with the food products are later placed in a box for easier transportation. A wrap-around packing machine places them in boxes. Each box usually contains a pre-set number of filled packages. Before being placed in the boxes, these packages are submitted to a QR code reader, which reads the individual QR code of each package. This QR code reader can be placed at the entrance of the wrap-around packing machine, if that is the case. A registration is thus generated for all packages contained in each transport box, and then also sent to a Server of the system according to the invention. After the box is filled with the packages, the system according to the invention generates a specific box code for each box and prints it on the box. This generated box code may be a bar code, a QR code, Data Matrix or of any other type. Therefore, the system according to the invention can connect, automatically and in real time, the information on the box with all the individual products stored in it, by simply associating the information on the box to each product registration in the product database.

In addition, throughout the production line of the food product, after the product is filled in the package, reading takes place with data collectors of information on other raw materials for packages and wrap-around packing of the product, such as trays and glue on the transport boxes, caps, cap glue, wrapping film, among others. In other words, the system collects identification data on any raw material involved throughout the productive process of the food product, before the raw material is processed in the production line, so as to enable full control, monitoring and tracing of all the ingredients constituting the final product. The transport boxes are usually placed on pallets to be shipped to the sales points. Before they are placed on the pallets, the boxes must undergo a code reader, which automatically reads the code printed on each of them, storing the read data on the Server of the food product monitoring and tracing system according to the invention. After the boxes are placed on the pallet, the system generates a specific pallet code for each pallet, which, again, may be a bar code, a QR code, Data Matrix or of any other type, and applies that code on the pallet, as shown in Figure 2. This pallet code will thus be associated with all the boxes on that pallet, which, in turn, will also be connected, in the system of the invention, with the information on all the packages contained in those boxes. The information on the identification of the pallet can be added to the product database in the line of each product contained on that pallet.

Therefore, during the pallet distribution process, reading the specific code of each pallet should suffice to obtain detailed information on each product and box placed on that pallet. In order to better understand the product monitoring and tracing system and method according to the invention, below are the description and illustration (Figure 3) of a sample operation in the logistics and distribution sector of a food plant.

As shown in Figure 3, when the food plant places an order from the customer, it checks for the availability of the order in its inventory, gets ready for delivery routing, taking into account that and other placed orders, and allocates transport for that delivery. The resource management system (ERP) of the food plant then issues a packing list for each order, specifying customers. This packing list is forwarded to the cargo separation area, where the specific load for that packing list is put aside. In this phase, either pallets with boxes or only individual boxes containing products may be separated. Afterwards, the codes of the boxes and/or the pallets separated for that packing list are read by means of code readers, and this identification information on the boxes and pallets is stored in the monitoring and tracing system according to the invention, in association with its respective packing list. More specifically, the identification data on the packing list are also associated, in the product database, with the registration of each product contained on that packing list. That enables the tracing system to associate the first buying customer (for instance, a retailer, a wholesaler or a distributor) for each specific product. Besides, once the packing list is separated, an indication that the packing list is done will be inserted on the ERP at the food plant, so that the ERP can issue the invoice (billing document) to the customer. As shown in Figure 4, at purchasing moment, consumers can read the individual product code (QR code) printed on the package, and have access to diverse information about that individual product among the items of information collected throughout the process from source of raw materials (for example, region of the farms supplying that milk) to the first customer to buy the food product, to whom it is delivered after leaving the plant. It is thus up to the manufacturer to configure the system according to the invention so as to provide customers with the selected information deemed relevant out of all the information and data traced and collected in the productive, logistic and distribution chain herein described.] As formerly discussed, such information includes the source of raw materials, formulation and nutritional data of the food product itself, of the packages, stages and equipment in product processing and production, quality data measured in-line and in real time, production batches, date and time of filling, wrap-around packing, and palletization, information on storage, transportation and distribution of that specific and individual product. This information is accessed by consumers on the portal to which the QR code reader will direct them, after reading the QR code on the package of the acquired product.

This tracing information is also extremely relevant for manufacturers, since it enables them to control productivity at the plant and of the delivery system, to monitor the quality of traded food products, to identify occasional defects and issues about such products, or to carry out recall for defective products even before they are sold to consumers. The reason is that, in case a defective product is identified, the manufacturer is able to access all due data, such as expiry date, manufacturing, analysis, processing, filling and storage of the product, and thus try to spot where there happened to be a flaw that might have caused the defect in the product. From that conclusion, the manufacturer should be able to also identify what other individual products were subject to the same circumstances that have caused the defect, and thus recall precisely those products.

For instance, the contamination of a dairy product may result from inadequate hygiene or contamination of the package, production and filling equipment, expired shelf life, or even contamination of the raw materials used in the food product. By identifying the contamination factor, the manufacturer is able to size properly what products have possibly been affected, and thus recover them. The manufacturer can also attempt to obtain a sample of a product submitted to those same conditions that may have caused the contamination, carry out the analysis of the product and confirm, by means of counterproof, whether the product deemed contaminated by the consumer was actually contaminated, and try to verify if the contamination occurred during the productive process, or after the acquisition of the product by the consumer.

Another advantage of the system and the method of the present invention is the possibility of tracing misdirected or stolen products during distribution to delivery points to the first buying customer to whom the product is delivered after leaving the plant. Once the misdirection of boxes and pallets is acknowledged in these specific circumstances, and knowing what boxes and pallets happened to be on each means of transportation that left the route defined on the packing list, it is possible to include, in the system according to the invention, an indication that those boxes or pallets have been misdirected, and such information will be automatically associated with the registrations in the database of the individual products contained in the boxes and on the pallets, thus made available in the system.

Finally, tracing all information on the productive chain, including logistics and distribution, as well as the first buying customers to whom the product is delivered after leaving the plant is also useful for internal control and auditing purposes by the manufacturer of the food product.

Having described a preferred example of implementation, it must be clear that the scope of the present invention comprises other possible variations, being limited solely by the contents of the attaching claims, therein included the possible equivalents.

Claims

1. System for monitoring and tracing food products applied to the facilities for the production of industrialized food, which comprises a station for the production of food products from raw materials, a filling station for packaging food products, and a station for wrap-around packing of the packages in transport boxes. The system features: one data collector before the entrance to the production station, for the collection of identification information on the raw materials of the food product and of the packages to be filled with the food product; at least one data collector for the collection of quality data on the food product and its raw materials displayed between the entrance to the production station and the entrance to the filling station; one means of identification of the batch number of the food product at the exit of the production station in order to identify a batch number corresponding to each batch of food product produced; the batch number is stored in a database; one RFID reader at the entrance of the filling station to read the identification information on the packages; one generator of specific product codes placed at the exit of the filling station, which generates a specific product code for each package filled with food products, and which prints that specific product code on the respective package containing the food product; this specific product code is generated from the identification information on each package and on the batch of the food product fed to the filling station; one database hosted on a Server, containing registrations of food products with specific identification information for each food product and its respective package; each product registration is associated with the respective product code printed on its package, with information on the production, wrap-around packing and logistics of that product; one optical code reader at the entrance of the wrap-around packing station, to read the identification information on the packages fed to the wrap-around packing stations, which will be stored in the transport boxes; one generator of box codes, which generates and prints a specific box code for each box filled with packages containing the food product. The box code is associated with the identification information on that box and on the packages placed inside it; the box code generator sends the box identification information to the database where the food product is registered, and, on this Server, the box identification information is associated with the registrations of the food product contained in that box.

2. System for monitoring and tracing food products according to Claim 1, characterized by the fact that the product batch number is associated with identification information on that batch of the food product, which comprises at least one of the following: identification and source of the raw materials, identification of the machines used for production at the production station, and date and time of production.

3. System for monitoring and tracing food products according to Claim 1 or 2, characterized by the fact that the specific product code is associated with identification information on that food product, which comprises at least one of the following: identification and source of the raw materials, identification of the machines used for production at the production station, and date and time of production, identification of the packages and their raw materials, date and time of filling, and identification of the equipment used for filling at the filling station.

4. System for monitoring and tracing food products according to any of the previous claims, characterized by the fact that the facilities for the production of industrialized food comprise a palletization station for loading the transport boxes containing the packages of food products on pallets for distribution. The system also comprises: a second optical code reader at the entrance of the palletization station, to read identification information on the box codes on the transport boxes loaded onto each pallet; one generator of pallet codes, which generates and applies, on each pallet, a specific pallet code associated with the identification information on that pallet and on the transport boxes containing packages of products loaded onto them; the pallet code generator sends the pallet identification information to the database, and, in this database, the pallet identification information is associated with the registrations of the food product loaded onto that pallet.

5. System for monitoring and tracing food products according to any of the previous claims, characterized by the fact that the product codes are QR codes; the box and pallet codes are bar codes.

6. System for monitoring and tracing food products according to any of the previous claims, characterized by the fact that the specific product code is printed on the food package with non-removable ink.

7. Method for monitoring and tracing food products applied to the facilities for the production of industrialized food, where food production stages are carried out from raw materials, followed by filling the packages with the food products, and wrap-around packing of the packages in transport boxes. The method features the following stages: reading and registering identification information on raw materials of the food products, and on the raw materials and sub-products of the packages to be filled with the food products, before and during production of the food product; obtaining a batch number corresponding to the food product; storing the batch number in a database; reading the identification information on the packages that are fed to the filling phase; generating a specific product code for each package filled with the food product in the filling stage, and printing that specific product code on the respective package containing the food product after filling; generating a database containing a food product registration corresponding to each package containing the food product generated in the filling phase; each food product registration comprises specific identification information on that food product and on that package, and each registration is associated with the specific product code generated and printed on the package; in the wrap-around packing phase, reading the specific product code of the food product packages stored in each transport box, generating a specific box code for each box, and printing the specific box code on the respective box; registering the specific box codes generated; each specific box code is associated with the identification information on that box and on the packages stored inside it; in each food product registration in the database, associating the specific box code corresponding to the respective box where the food product package is stored; after leaving production facilities, reading the specific product code printed on the package by using an optical reader, and accessing at least some of the identification information on the raw materials of that food product and of that package, and information on the manufacturing of that final food product.

8. Method for monitoring and tracing food products according to Claim 7, characterized by the fact that, at the facilities for the production of industrialized food, a palletization stage is still carried out, in which the transport boxes containing the food packages are carried on pallets for distribution.

The method also comprises the following steps: reading the box code of the transport boxes loaded onto each pallet; generating a specific pallet code for each pallet loaded with transport boxes, and applying the specific pallet code to the respective pallet; the specific pallet code is associated with the identification information on that pallet and on the transport boxes containing the product packages; in each food product registration in the database, associating the specific pallet code corresponding to the respective pallet where the food product package is loaded.

Method for monitoring and tracing food products according to any of the Claims 7 or 8, characterized by the fact that, in the stage of reading the specific product code, after leaving production facilities, consumers are directed to a portal where they can access at least some identification information on the raw materials of that specific food product.

Method for monitoring and tracing food products according to any of the Claims 7 to 9, characterized by the fact that, during the production, filling, wrap-around packing, and palletization, information on performance and productivity is registered for the equipment used in those phases. Such information is associated with the product registrations in the database.

11. Method for monitoring and tracing food products according to any of the Claims 7 to 10, characterized by the fact that it is carried out by a system as outlined in any of the Claims 1 to 6.