Agribusiness

Good data, good visibility, good business.

Increasingly, regulators and consumers around the world are requiring more information about the activities and products used on and around the farm and orchards. The Information is needed to streamline supply chains, enhance end to end traceability and drive sustainability outcomes. GS1’s unique product and location identifiers provides a “common language” for enhanced visibility of products and locations from farm to fork, globally.

GS1 NZ – responding to agribusiness challenges

The agribusiness sector is the backbone of New Zealand’s economy but it’s a tough world out there for farmers, producers, retailers and others.

Over the past two decades, GS1 NZ has been working closely with New Zealand’s agribusiness sector to optimise supply chains, drive efficiencies, reduce operating costs and increase consumer safety. This is through the use of GS1’s unique product, entity and location identifiers, barcodes, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) and data sharing technologies and services.

Driving sector efficiencies by using high quality product data

Building on the successful sector-wide agreement in 2015 to use GS1 global identifiers on products, the sector will also benefit from agreeing on and sharing standardised product information.

The major agribusiness retailers (Farm Source, Farmlands, Rural Co and PGG Wrightson) have agreed to work pro-competitively and collaboratively with suppliers on aligning product data requirements to enhance procurement processes, enhance supply chain visibility, increase efficiency and reduce costs for all participants.

When merchants and suppliers align on what product information is shared and how, purchasing and procurement processes are streamlined, operational costs are reduced, traceability is improved, and overall efficiencies increased.

GS1’s National Product Catalogue is widely used for this in other sectors – ensuring product information is always complete, correct and shared efficiently with retailers (and end customers).

Other opportunities

Eastpack New Zealand

Kiwifruit packhouse and coolstore company, Eastpack is using GS1 standards for superior supply chain visibility and effective traceability outcomes. "Traceability and having consumer confidence is absolutely critical." - Tony Hawken, Eastpack. The use of GS1 Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) standards and technologies has provided them with globally unique identification for products and fast, hands-free inventory management and logistics processes. Watch Eastpack's video to learn more. 

Traceability in the agribusiness sector

Ineffective or absent Traceability Systems can present severe problems for consumers and industry. The 2013 dairy industry whey protein scare relating to Botulism, and the subsequent challenges related to Traceability, highlighted the need for effective industry systems. Read more

Fresh Upstream - GS1 Netherlands

In the agricultural and fresh produce industry, GS1 Netherlands is working together with the Fresh Upstream Foundation on one, uniform, digital supply chain language in the international agrifood supply chain. Fresh Upstream sets the agenda, encourages and facilitates companies to use GS1 standards in the agrifood supply chain and to work from a single source for data. Read more

Talk to GS1 New Zealand about Agribusiness today