A preliminary study carried out by Britain's Food Standards Agency suggests that systems in the food chain that allow food, ingredients, feed and animals to be traced, can play an important role in protecting consumers' interests with regard to food, even where consumers don't know anything about the operating traceability systems.
The study has found that there is a wide variation in how food sources are traced and the systems used to trace them. Several systems for tracking livestock, especially beef, are well advanced and major retailers have also put in systems to trace the food they sell.
However, the survey found that the ability to trace food in the catering sector is not so well developed.
The diverse nature of food processing operations means that each business keeps individual traceability records, and methods used range from sophisticated IT to handwritten labels.
FSA researchers found that the quality and quantity of the information available depends on a number of factors, including the product, the law and what consumers demand.
While there is currently no general legal requirement for traceability systems in the food chain, some degree of traceability is required under a number of separate measures.
And with new EU legislation in place to help protect consumers and ensure food safety, including new rules for traceability which come into force in 2005, this area will have to become more widely and consistently enforced.
The FSA is working with stakeholders to assess its priorities in encouraging effective and robust traceability in the food chain.