To improve food safety in shops, Israeli firm Wiliot has announced an initiative that works to create completely transparent and traceable supply chains through the adoption of ambient IoT technology.

Ambient IoT is a battery-free wireless technology that is being incorporated in multiple wireless standards, such as Bluetooth, 5G Advanced, 6G and wifi, allowing food products to be connected to the internet and the power of AI at a fraction of the cost of legacy technologies.

The ambient IoT enables a real-time inventory paradigm that not only benefits food safety and FSMA compliance, but is key to more efficient store operations in the face of omni-channel competition, and competing on quality as well as value.

As part of this initiative, Wiliot is partnering with iFoodDS and Trustwell to incorporate its ambient IoT data and technology into both companies’ safety and compliance platforms.

“Empowered by the unprecedented capabilities of the ambient IoT, the entire food industry can move beyond QR codes, advance shipping notices and electronic documentation to a new traceability paradigm that is infinitely faster, entirely real time, and drastically reduces the cost of manual labour and technology infrastructure,” said Wiliot CMO Steve Statler. “We look forward to working with iFoodDS and Trustwell to help some of the country’s largest food companies both meet FSMA 204 requirements, while simultaneously adding more value in terms of sustainability, freshness and operational efficiency that advances the entire food industry.”

Trustwell’s software and consulting are focused on increasing transparency across the supply chain, giving food companies the tools they need to remain ahead of industry regulations. Trustwell brings together two products – FoodLogiQ and Genesis – to go beyond compliance and set a standard for safety, transparency and quality in the food industry.

“The incorporation of Wiliot’s ambient IoT data into our Trustwell Connect platform will empower brands to have visibility across the supply chain with a trusted single source of truth, fully traceable, compliant and data-driven,” said Julie McGill, vice president at Trustwell (www.trustwell.com). “More than 2500 brands around the world rely on Trustwell to manage their regulatory requirements with more than 200 million critical tracking events recorded using our FoodLogiQ traceability software. The incorporation of Wiliot’s ambient IoT data into our tech is going to enable us to take food safety to a new level of traceability with precise execution.”

IFoodDS helps food companies deliver traceable, wholesome, high-quality products to consumers. Its connected traceability, quality, and food safety give companies visibility and insight into their supply chains, reduce food waste and optimise inventory quality.

“FDA’s final traceability rule, FSMA 204, provides an important framework for the food industry,” said Andrew Kennedy, principal traceability advisor at iFoodDS (www.ifoodds.com). “The food industry can leverage this framework in conjunction with Wiliot’s ambient IoT technology and iFoodDS software to significantly enhance food safety, food freshness and operational efficiency. This game changing technology will help usher in the new era of smarter food safety.”

The CDC estimates that each year, roughly one in six Americans get sick from foodborne illness. Of those people, 128,000 are hospitalised and 3000 lose their lives to foodborne disease.

The FDA took action in 2022 when it finalised its FSMA Rule 204 rule that established a foundation for end-to-end food traceability by focusing on tracking certain foods at each step across the supply chain and expanding beyond one-up, one-back traceability. The goal of Rule 204 is to create visibility within the supply chain to enable a better response to foodborne illnesses, contamination, and other public health and safety issues. The food industry has until January 2026 to comply with Rule 204.

“This goal of better protecting consumers cannot be achieved without creating greater transparency and traceability throughout the entire chain of food production distribution system,” said Frank Yiannas, former deputy commissioner of the FDA and one of the authors of FSMA Rule 204, who also serves as an advisor to Wiliot. “Wiliot, iFoodDS and Trustwell are uniquely equipped to make this transparency a reality faster and more efficiently thanks to their collective embrace of a new technology paradigm unlike anything we’ve seen before.”

Wiliot’s battery-free ambient IoT Pixels can attach to any food product or packaging to connect it to the internet and embed it with intelligence. Once attached, products push out item or case-level information about their location, temperature, carbon footprint and more, equipping food retailers and companies with the high-definition real-time data that is required as part of FSMA Rule 204.

Wiliot (www.wiliot.com) is already working with iFoodDS and Trustwell on a series of FSMA 204 compliance pilot projects with some of the USA’s largest food companies. The collaborations will continue to scale throughout 2024, ahead of the January 2026 FSMA compliance deadline.