Customers now have the opportunity to find out more about the origin and individual production stages of REWE Bio own-brand meat and milk. A QR code on the packaging makes this possible. One spoke to buyer Dr Carolin Winkel about the background.
Carolin Winkel, Buyer Ware Ultrafrische 2
Where does my steak come from? Where was the meat processed, packaged and sold? These are questions that more and more consumers are asking themselves. REWE is now making it easy to obtain transparent information about the origin of products - using a QR code on the packaging. Selected dairy and meat products are making the start. Carolin Winkel, Buyer Ware Ultrafrische 2, explains in an interview how this works and what the benefits are.
one: Mrs Winkel, you want to give customers more information about the origin of your products. Why is that?
Carolin Winkel: In today's world, the origin, provenance, regionality and traceability of food are playing an increasingly important role in our customers' purchasing decisions. The coronavirus crisis has further strengthened this trend. Studies such as the Forsa nutrition report from 2021 show that the origin of the raw material even beats price as a purchasing criterion in some product groups. When it comes to meat and dairy products in particular, more and more people want to know exactly where the products come from and how they were processed. That's why our customers now have the option of easily accessing this information via a QR code for REWE Bio own-brand meat and milk.
one: How exactly does it work?
Carolin Winkel: First, the QR code on the product packaging has to be scanned and then the batch or LOT number entered. As a result, the product-specific information is displayed and the individual production stages along the product's value chain up to its point of origin are revealed. This is additional information that we cannot include on the packaging to this extent due to the limited space available.
More transparency: information on the origin can be called up by scanning the QR code
one: There is already mandatory origin labelling for many foods. What is the difference?
Carolin Winkel: In contrast to the information on origin and provenance on packaging, transparent traceability records the supply chain of the food, which can be used to trace back to the origin step by step. To put it simply, you could say: who did what with a product and where? In the case of a REWE organic rump steak, for example, the farms where the animal was slaughtered, cut up and processed can be seen transparently and batch by batch. The farming method is also labelled.
one: Who stores the relevant information?
Carolin Winkel: REWE uses the "fTRACE" platform for the service. The technology obtains the information on the individual articles directly from our suppliers, who enter it into the system daily and just in time. In addition, data from external databases, such as the QS inspection system for food safety and the animal welfare initiative, are stored. This guarantees high and reliable data quality and automatic synchronisation of the data for plausibility checks.
one: What advantages does the system offer REWE?
Carolin Winkel: Traceability and supply chain transparency promote trust in products. Of course, this also helps us as a retailer, for example in differentiating our own brands from the competition.
one: Why is REWE starting with the two product groups milk and meat?
Carolin Winkel: There is a greater desire for transparency of origin, especially when it comes to animal products. This is why milk and meat from REWE Bio were selected as the first products for traceability labelling. In the course of the pilot project, a total of 36 REWE Bio meat and 2 REWE Bio milk products will be integrated over the coming weeks.
one: What are the plans for expanding the range?
Carolin Winkel: Depending on whether and how the additional information is accepted, it is conceivable that it will be extended to other products in the future.