Quebec’s maple syrup producers’ federation will have over $110,000 in federal funding to study the use of RFID chips as a traceability tool.
The Federation des producteurs acericoles du Quebec (FPAQ) on Tuesday got a pledge of up to $110,620 from the federal Canadian Integrated Food Safety Initiative (CIFSI) for its feasibility study.
The study would examine using RFID (radio frequency identification) chips on maple syrup barrels, a tracking method the FPAQ expects to provide “better readability and identification capacity, and better movement control,” the government said in a release.
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“Further, with each barrel being inspected, the ability to store and monitor syrup quality would be greatly improved,” the government said.
“Given the numerous stakeholders involved in the management of bulk syrup sales in Quebec, this project will result in better follow-up of sales for the 160,000 to 225,000 barrels of bulk maple syrup that are marketed each year in Quebec,” FPAQ president Serge Beaulieu said in the government’s release.
“Automating the traceability of every barrel will facilitate this important management step for the sales agency,” he said.
The federal CIFSI backs national organizations to set up traceability processes and systems.
“This funding will help strengthen maple syrup traceability to improve product quality and origin labelling,” Quebec MP Jean-Pierre Blackburn, the federal minster of state for agriculture, said in the release.
