To stay competitive, most produce companies are looking for ways to improve processes at every stage of the supply chain. The packing area is no exception. RedLine Packing™ works with Famous Software to streamline pack out and ensure greater lot control and accuracy by applying the power of mobility to eliminate manual errors. This combination of reliable software and selected barcode hardware uses grower block tracking for precise product traceability, which is critical for food safety.
Bin Dump Validation
The process starts at the receiving dock, when a truck of fresh produce arrives. Receipt information is entered, and unique barcoded tags are printed and applied to each bin. (If the grower is using RedLine Field, this information is already available and integrated with RedLine Packing.) The fruit is moved into a staging area as grower inventory until it is ready to be packed. On the packing line PC console, a worker views and selects the next grower lot to be packed and starts the Packing run. From there, RedLine Packing tracks the quantity packed versus the quantity still left to pack. You can be confident that each container contains the correct quantity of the right produce from the expected lot. A complete history of the packed container is tracked and time-stamped and assigned to a specific operator.
Grower Block and Lot Tracking
As the bulk bins move down the conveyer, a fixed-mount scanner reads the bar code tag and checks it against the grower lot that has been selected by the person running the Packing. If the bin is from the selected grower block, the container continues to be processed, and a highly visible message board shows what is currently being packed. In addition, a rotating display shows the previous run’s grower block and variety for the packers who are finishing up the prior lot.
Lot Control
But mistakes can happen. If a bin from a different grower block is placed on the conveyor, the system triggers alarms and stops the dumper until the error is cleared. When a mistake is detected, the operator removes the miss-loaded bin and signals to restart the run. This error checking maintains integrity of grower lot packouts. Since dumping errors are eliminated, maximum efficiency is gained on the packing line. In addition, food safety best practices are supported by strong lot control.
Case Labeling for Traceability
As each case is packed and moves down the packing line, a label can be automatically generated and applied that meets the best practices for Produce Case Labeling and includes all of the information necessary to meet the requirements of the Produce Traceability Initiative:
- GTIN Number – Barcode and Human Readable
- Commodity and additional description (e.g. Variety, Variety Group, Color)
- Pack Configuration
- Lot and Batch Number – Barcode and Human Readable
- Pack / Harvest / Batch Date if not included as part of the Lot / batch Number
- Country of Origin - addresses COOL requirements
Serialized Case Labeling for Complete Traceability
In addition to the information required for the Produce Traceability Initiative, it is possible to embed a unique Case Serial Identifier into the GTIN based on the GS1 Standard. This will allow each case to be traced from the packing line, onto the pallet, through to the customer. Having this level of identification will allow identification and traceability of the individual cases even if they are moved from one pallet to another or as cases are removed from pallets as the product continues through the produce supply chain. In a recall scenario involving a particular lot or even a pallet, the packing operation will be able to specify where each and every case that could be at risk was delivered from their operation.
Tracking Cases to Pallets
As the cases come off the packing line and are assembled onto pallets, they can be associated with their specific Pallet ID by the system and then tracked downstream through the process using the Pallet ID. This can be managed at either the lot / block level of traceability or by serialized cases, depending on how the labels were created and applied earlier in the process. If pallets are either split or consolidated during the storage, order management, or shipping processes, the specific cases that have moved to a new pallet are tracked easily and accurately using the bar code labels.
If the processing/cold storage facility is also using RedLine Cooler to manage their storage and fulfillment processes, information from RedLine Packing is seamlessly available as needed to the downstream applications and processes.