Miller Magazine Issue: 144 December 2021

57 COVER STORY MILLER / december 2021 As consumers become more aware of food safety issues, actors all along food value chains must be equipped with the ability to meet consumer demands. A critical com- ponent of administering food safety stan- dards is the ability to trace products from their origin through the supply chain, iso- late threats, and recall contaminated prod- ucts when needed. Traceability systems can advance producer access to markets and improve food safety for consumers. World food production faces a tremendous challenge due to the growing population. The global population is estimated to reach 9 billion by 2050 with 70% more food being required. Safe food is an important dimension of food security. All agricultural food ingredients carry food safety risks that need to be understood and mitigated. Therefore, regulations on food safety are becoming more stringent in grain processing industries. It is necessary to implement international standards, guidelines and recommendations for the production of safe foods. This includes developing the necessary ana- lytical capacity to detect and monitor food contaminants such as residues of pesticides and mycotoxins during the production process and in finished food products. A relatively new development in systems for the control of food safety and quality is the focus on the traceabili- ty of foods. The ability to demonstrate the origin and the authenticity of food products is a major concern to food safety regulators and to trading partners due to increasing mobility and cross-border transportation of food commodi- ties. Failure to securely characterize food quality and safe- ty parameters has been shown not only to have devastat- ing economic consequences but also to create potential human health problems. Food traceability touches upon a range of diversified interests of all stakeholders in the food production chain: consumers are concerned that the food Increasing food safety and traceability