The red meat industry recently launched a new traceability platform to bring transparency, efficiency, and trust across the entire value chain. Developed by Gendac, this innovation represents a long-anticipated vision among industry pioneers.
Chief executive officer of the Red Meat Industry Services (RMIS), Dewald Olivier, said those behind the initiative are visionaries who dreamed of a transparent and efficient red meat value chain.
“Their dedication to building an industry that would elevate every producer, from small-scale farmers to commercial enterprises, brought us to this moment. Today, we are honoured to take this step forward in realising their dream,” he said.
Tracking red meat products from farm to table
According to Olivier, the platform’s primary goal is to provide farmers and other value chain participants with the ability to market their products with a high level of credibility.
“Through new production unit numbers known as global location numbers (GLNs), producers will gain a tool to enhance traceability, allowing for products to be tracked from farm to table,” he said.
Meanwhile, the chief operations officer at RMIS, Dr Phillip Oosthuizen, said the system not only ensures safety and quality but also adds real value to the investment, providing peace of mind to producers and buyers alike.
“While the reputation of South Africa is a reliable source of premium red meat, the dreamers among us, their dream is that every primary producer will be able to take their rightful place in a modern, fulfilling and transparent market,” he said.
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Simple and accessible application process
David Malan from Gendac, along with his team of developers, demonstrated the platform’s ease of use. To simplify the process, users will be able to register on the platform with a mobile phone number for verification, eliminating the need for passwords or emails.
Malan said the application allows each participant, whether a small-scale farmer, commercial farmer, feedlot, auction house, or abattoir, to select their role in the value chain and register their location by identifying their specific production unit.
According to Malan, multiple production units can be created for farms with non-contiguous pieces of land, and the platform only requires essential information.
“This is simply just for your portfolio, just to have a unique identifier for the portfolio,” he said.
Malan shared that users will benefit from WhatsApp integration for future communication, streamlining the process and bypassing the need for email or SMS.
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