Tomatoes

Supplier declarations, audits and traceability systems are fundamental to responsible sourcing. They verify what has been declared, confirm that procedures have been followed and record the movement of goods throughout the supply chain.

However, they rely on the accuracy of the information entering the system.

This becomes particularly important in tomato supply chains, where products commonly pass through multiple processors, traders and manufacturers before reaching consumers. While each stage is commercially legitimate, it also increases the distance between the physical product and the documentation describing it.

Where information is incomplete, inaccurate or deliberately misleading, the same records can perpetuate an incorrect origin claim from one participant to the next.

This creates what may be described as an evidentiary gap: organisations can often demonstrate that appropriate processes were followed, but not necessarily that the physical product is consistent with the claim being made.

As scrutiny of origin claims increases, organisations need to close the gap between documentation and verifiable origin to regain confidence that their supply chains deliver exactly what they declare.

Source Certain combines advanced forensic techniques such as trace element analysis (TEA) and stable isotope ratio analysis (SIRA) to independently verify where tomato products come from by testing the product itself. These techniques can reliably establish whether a product is scientifically consistent with its claimed origin based on naturally occurring chemical signatures that reflect the environmental conditions in which tomatoes were grown.

This allows organisations to proactively identify and address emerging supply chain risks before they develop into regulatory, commercial or reputational exposure.