Last updated on March 1st, 2024 at 12:28 pm
Associated Grocers of New England (AGNE) has advanced its efforts to comply with FDA’s FSMA 204 food traceability law through automation with the ReposiTrak Traceability Network.
The ReposiTrak solution enables the exchange and maintenance of FDA-required data between the co-op’s suppliers, distribution center and retail locations.
“AGNE services the needs of independent retail grocers of every store size and format. It’s absolutely essential that any technology or solution we choose is efficient to use and economical for them, and also for our valued supplier partners,” said Mike Violette, president and CEO of AGNE.
“Complying with the FDA’s regulation is a non-negotiable, but finding the best solution for our total supply chain was up to us.”
The FDA’s FSMA 204 food traceability regulation requires manufacturers, processors and those that pack or hold foods on the Food Traceability List to establish and maintain key data element records for specific critical tracking events in a product’s journey through the supply chain.
As that product changes hands or changes form, a string of data must be transferred between trading partners to provide full, end-to-end traceability.
The AGNE supply chain consists of hundreds of suppliers, a distribution center and more than 350 corporate and independent retail locations operating under multiple banners.
“Thousands of SKUs are moved through our distribution center every day, many of which are directly impacted by the food traceability law,” Violette continues.
“The ReposiTrak Traceability Network makes it easy for our hundreds of suppliers to get connected and send us the required data, without disrupting their workflow or ours.”
There is no cost for retailers and suppliers can connect to an unlimited number of customers and begin sharing data for a low, flat fee.
About Associated Grocers of New England (AGNE)
Founded in 1946, AGNE is the largest retailer-owned, wholesale grocery distribution center in New England. While majority of its business is in the six New England states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont, it has expanded beyond the region and has retailers in the Upstate New York/Albany area and eastern Pennsylvania.
Read more distribution news from The Shelby Report.
