The “Food Origins Survey,” an Angus Reid study of 1504 Canadians, put a lens on how much people value food traceability, natural ingredients and feeling safe with what they are putting in their bodies. Overall, nine-in-10 Canadians (91 per cent) feel it is important to understand the ingredients they are putting in their body. When asked about their food concerns, 84 per cent of Canadians feel concerned with where their food comes from. This concern increased with age.
“We conducted this survey to get a benchmark on Canadians’ food habits and concerns,” said Nicola Bertinelli, president of the Consorzio del Parmigiano Reggiano. “Not only can we see that Canadians understand the importance of quality ingredients, but the results highlight their concerns about food safety.”
The study shows Canadians value quality ingredients. Three-quarters of Canadians (74 per cent) are willing to pay more for quality foods. Despite the increase in organic, non-GMO, natural foods, only four-in-10 Canadians believe these claims.
Food traceability is increasing in concern for Canadians, as 76 per cent are yearning to know where their food comes from and agree that being able to trace their food to its source makes them feel safer.
Smaller than a grain of salt
New technology has the ability to deliver previously unseen levels of traceability, inventory tracking and control, product authentication, quality-assurance testing, product serialization, and consumer safety with innovative, food-safe digital tags.
To support Canadians’ desire for food safety and traceability, the Consortium of Parmigiano Reggiano has partnered with Kaasmerk Matec (Kaasmerk) and p-Chip Corporation (p-Chip) to launch a line of food-safe and secure traceability digital labels for its Parmigiano Reggiano cheese wheels.
The digital labels are integrated into a casein label on the rind of Parmigiano Reggiano. This scannable food tag is smaller than a grain of salt.
“Parmigiano Reggiano is one of the world’s oldest and most famous cheeses, and it is a product that symbolizes Italian produce,” said Bertinelli. “By being the first to incorporate these secure digital labels onto our cheese wheels, we can continue to ensure consumer safety, bringing the traceability and the authentication of our products to meet industry 4.0 technological targets.”
