Singapore’s Natural Trace seeks to combat food fraud, fill gaps in existing traceability tech with DNA-based ingredient
The firm’s idea of natural ingredient tagging emerged during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when supply chains worldwide were facing challenges that prompted companies to rethink and overhaul their strategies.
One of these aspects was traceability — the ability to track products from source to end user, and providing transparency for both producers and consumers.
At the same time, the pandemic accelerated the adoption of molecular-based technologies, such as polymerase chain reaction (PCR).
“That gave us the inspiration to develop a food-grade traceability solution that can be added directly into products and detected along the supply chain by molecular means. Natural Trace is in the business of food traceability, but we tag the food itself, not the packaging.
“We are not here to replace but rather to complement existing technologies, such as barcoding and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), to fill the gaps where these technologies cannot be applied because of their limitations. For example, how do you barcode a fruit or even cocoa and coffee beans growing on a farm?” the firm’s Chief Commercial Officer, Dr Julia Lee, told FoodNavigator-Asia.
Natural Trace’s proprietary ingredient, NaturalTag, is said to be completely natural and non-GMO, and is tasteless and colourless to leave “zero impact” on sensory aspects.
“We consider ourselves, first and foremost, a food ingredient company. We are producing a new class of food ingredients for traceability purposes, as opposed to a food additive. Food safety is central to our tech development. Specifically, NaturalTag has attained GRAS status from the US FDA.
“The company has a core team and an extended team of advisors, who are in the food ingredients business and are well-versed in food safety and regulations not just in Singapore and the region, but also worldwide. Due to intellectual property reasons, I can only share that the ingredient is something that has been consumed for centuries.”
According to Dr Lee, each tag created is unique and added in “tiny amounts” into a product at various points along the supply chain as needed.
The tag can be traced using the firm’s “NaturalDetect”, a targeted PCR testing method that detects a unique NaturalTag at any stage in the supply chain, enabling comprehensive monitoring and verification of product authenticity.
The results are then mapped using its “NaturalCloud”, a digital surveillance platform that generates insights to allow informed decision-making.
“By doing so, we create a digital link between food ingredients and product, with the rightful owner (producer) being able to provide an added level of transparency and confidence, which is extremely important in fostering trust, especially as today’s global food supply chains have become so complex.”
Rising importance of traceability
Over the past few years, Natural Trace has observed the increasingly important role that traceability plays.
“For consumers, knowing where their food comes from is [a form of] empowerment. They can make more conscious choices based on the origin of foods and the journey they have undergone to land on the plate. In fact, we are seeing more and more consumers who are opting to pay a premium for sustainability.
“There are also the problems of fraud and inauthenticity, which can cause health and safety issues. In recent years, we have seen food fraud becoming more rampant because of the growth of e-commerce platforms. Traceability is especially difficult for foods sold via these channels,” Dr Lee explained.
In addition, the aftermath of the pandemic, natural disasters, and geopolitical conflicts have resulted in major disruptions to supply chains.
“What came out of that is food inflation, which leads to cost-cutting and irresponsible market behaviour. Therefore, having a high level of traceability and transparency would help responsible producers differentiate themselves.
“It also means better control and more efficient forecasting of production lead times. Good traceability allows ethical growers and food manufacturers to tell their story, and to encourage recognition and continuity of their efforts. All in all, it helps build a more resilient supply chain to better serve consumers.”
As such, Dr Lee said that food manufacturers have been looking at ways to combat fraud and warrant that their innovations are not copied.
“Protecting the integrity of the supply chain would ensure that their products actually reach the consumers, so they do not lose out on any potential profits.
“Upstream traceability would put food manufacturers in a position to guarantee the origin of their raw materials, enable them to deliver on the promise of sustainability, and to strengthen the trust that consumers place in them when they buy the company’s product.”
Not a one man job
While there are “no limitations in principle” in terms of application, Dr Lee stressed that no two products are exactly the same and thus, Natural Trace strives to optimise its solution for each customer.
“We work together with our customers to understand their production process, and identify the part of the supply chain where they would like more transparency. This could be, for instance, upstream tracing back to source or downstream traceability to the retailer.”
She also revealed that NaturalTag has been commercially applied, with some companies using it to prevent fraud in their supply chains.
“Although natural ingredient tagging is not common yet, there are several other companies that offer molecular tracing. The biggest barriers to uptake would be safety concerns and getting regulatory approval for use in food, which is why we placed a lot of emphasis on being 100% natural, non-GMO, and getting FDA approval.”
The firm foresees traceability to become more widespread in the future, regardless of the technology employed, due to consumer demand and regulators responding to the “global and opaque nature” of supply chains.
“There is currently no silver bullet that can provide a tamper-proof, end-to-end traceability solution. This is where natural ingredient tagging can enter and work in tandem with other methods, such as barcoding, RFID or even blockchain, to go as far as product packaging and records management.
“Barcoding has been around for a long time, so it’s like the gold standard. We don’t want to change that, but I see a lot of gaps where we can work together with these technologies to complete that last mile. Natural ingredient tagging is an elegant and inexpensive way of directly tracing a product’s journey from farm to fork.”
