Cargill offers turkey traceability ahead of Thanksgiving

Through the blockchain solution initiative, consumers in the state of Texas can text or enter an on-package code at HoneysuckleWhite.com to access the farm’s location by state and county, view the family farm story, see photos from the farm and read a message from the farmer. Texas is the pilot location for the scheme for 2017. “The Honeysuckle White brand is committed to food transparency and we’re the only major turkey brand to exclusively provide family farm-raised turkey,” said Deborah Socha, Honeysuckle White brand manager . “We know consumers are looking beyond farm-to-table marketing promises to better understand where their food comes from and how it is produced. That’s why the Honeysuckle White brand is the first and only major turkey brand to pilot a blockchain-based solution for traceable turkey.” Honeysuckle White said consumer demand for farm-to-table transparency had driven this initiative. According to research conducted by the brand in 2014, 44% of turkey consumers think it is important for companies to be transparent in their practices. Meanwhile, further studies carried out in 2016 revealed 73% of consumers felt positive about companies that were transparent about where and how their products were made, grown or raised; and more than half of consumers considered farmers one of the most trusted sources on food-related issues. Texas farmer Darrell Glaser is one of the farmers involved in the scheme. “I’m honoured that the Honeysuckle White brand asked me to be one of the first farmers to make it possible for families to trace their turkey back to my family’s farm,” he said. “Everyone deserves to know more about the food they’re eating, and I like feeling more connected to the people I’m raising these turkeys for. It’s important for me that consumers understand the care my family puts in every day to provide quality turkeys for families across the country.” The pilot uses a blockchain-based solution, enabled by Cargill. Through blockchain, the brand hopes to build a “trusted, transparent food chain that integrates key stakeholders into the supply chain and creates a distributed ledger with immutable records”. As all participants inside the blockchain network must agree before a new record is added to a ledger, the technology also reduces the risk of fraud or human error, and cryptography within the network ensures security, authentication and integrity of transactions. Deb Bauler, Cargill chief information officer for North American Protein, added: “At Cargill, we are becoming a better partner through digitalisation and analytics, identifying opportunities to use technology to deliver real value for customers, partners and consumers. The transparency pilot with Honeysuckle White brand turkeys is one example of how we are using technology to shape the food system of the future and deliver on consumers’ desire for transparency in food.”

Cargill offers turkey traceability ahead of Thanksgiving

US poultry producer Cargill is offering consumers transparency on its turkeys through its Honeysuckle White brand.

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