In an effort to ensure consumer health, the Hanoi People’s Committee on January 3 issued a plan to launch a pilot program on using technology to trace the origins of agricultural products.
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| Hanoi plans to pilot quick response codes to trace origins of fruits traded in the city__Photo: Internet |
Accordingly, the city will use a quick response (QR) code plastering application to provide information about fruits at shops in the city.
The plan aims to improve the effectiveness of the state management of food safety, strengthen management capacity and control the quality and traceability of agricultural products in Hanoi.
It also aims to reduce administrative procedures, management costs and human resources, save time and raise the effectiveness of the fight against smuggling, trade frauds and counterfeit goods.
Along with the pilot application of QR codes to control the origins of fruits, the city will also apply a pilot authentication code against counterfeit goods and use QR codes to trace the sources of such products as vegetables, meat and aquatic products.
The city will also apply regulations and identification codes in order to establish a safe food chain in the city and a central database to enable internet access to check product information with smartphones or devices set up at farm produce shops.
According to the city’s roadmap, in 2019 the QR code application will be expanded to use for traceability of other agricultural products, production facilities, farms, slaughterhouses, large-scale processing establishments, supermarkets, wholesale markets and market surveillance offices.
By 2020, all production chains in the city will apply QR codes to trace origins of products and provide transparency to the public.
At the same time, the rate of traceability by QR code in small-scale production and business establishments will increase by 30-50 percent.
The Hanoi People’s Committee assigns the Hanoi Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to coordinate with related units in working out plans to maintain the application of QR codes for product traceability in the city.- (VLLF)
