Lutz, Florida, U.S.A.-based Eagle Product Inspection has released new traceability technology aimed at helping seafood processors prepare for changes to the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).
FSMA's Food Traceability Rule, the compliance date for which has been pushed to 2028, requires food manufacturers, processors, packers, and storage facilities to maintain records on key data elements (KDEs) related to specific critical tracking events (CTEs) so that they can provide the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) with that information within 24 hours when necessary.
Eagle Product Inspection produces X-ray technology which allows processors to scan their products for contaminants that pose food safety and recall risks, including bone fragments down to 1 millimeter.
The new traceability technology, called TraceServer, which comes standard on Eagle’s RMI 400 X-ray machine and can be integrated into its other X-ray technologies, records the X-ray inspection process to comply with the strict recordkeeping required under FSMA.
“Although the FDA has delayed the date for recordkeeping requirements under Section 204, processors aren’t – and should not – hit the pause button in their compliance efforts,” Eagle Product Inspection Head of Marketing Christy Draus said. “The RMI 400 with TraceServer delivers on traceability through accurate system and process data that is exportable to other programs. The machine also immediately reduces the risk of costly recalls and potential food safety incidents through superior image processing.”
Recordable data under Eagle Product's new technology includes machine details, lanes and products, batches, sub-batches, partitions, package/object data, reject reasons, images, and values. Users can store and retrieve information from up to 32 X-ray machines at once from a centralized database.
The new product can also help processors meet the food safety standards set out by various certification programs, including HACCP, the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI), and BRCGS, the company said in a press release.
