German retailer Metro Group has created a smartphone app to give detailed supply chain information about its meat and fish products.
Customers will be able to use the app to find out where a fish was caught and by what method. For a number of meat products, the app will provide details of the origin, processing, quality and sustainability of the merchandise.
Metro has worked with GS1 Germany and its IT services subsidiary METRO Systems, to create the new traceability system.
in recent months. What makes this innovative solution so special is that – from the producer to the retailer –
All parties in the supply chain from producer to retailer enter their product data in their own data bases which are then consolidated online. Via a search engine and by way of a unique product identification it is then possible to obtain detailed information about individual products.
This avoids the need to pass large databases around the supply chain avoiding data redundancy, reducing complexity and curbing the costs for all parties involved.
The new solution is based on internationally applicable, independent standards and is thus suited for adding further product categories or additional data bases.
“Today, most of our customers as a matter of course expect to receive information about the product origin in the same way as perfect quality and product safety”, said Heiko Hutmacher, responsible for sustainability and human resources on the management board of Metro.
“The new traceability system works for companies of all sizes and sectors and across all product categories – no matter whether food or non-food. Moreover, it enables us, better than ever before, to render our commitment to sustainable sourcing transparent for our customers and comply with the evermore stringent statutory regulations on product traceability”.
