Food supply chain

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to test the degree of understanding of traceability concept, drivers, systems’ characteristics, benefits and barriers, and frameworks with focus on UK small and medium businesses (SMEs) that operate in the food supply chain (FSC). Design/methodology/approach – This study employs a survey strategy by means of a questionnaire that was sent to food and drink companies operating in the FSC. In total, 164 SMEs answered the questionnaire. Answers were analysed by means of frequency distributions, coding, and pattern matching. Findings – UK SMEs appear to have a moderate understanding of the definition of traceability. The main drivers for traceability implementation are product safety and quality, even more than regulation. It is also found that SMEs do not consider technology as driver to implement traceability. In term of frameworks employed, about half of the SMEs stated that they were regulatory compliant, and followed industry standards. Furthermore, in term of traceability systems’ characteristics, one out of three companies have a basic system in place (only regulatory compliant), while two out of three have a more sophisticated system, with many companies voluntarily tracing the material during the production process, while chain traceability appears not to be widely implemented. Finally, it is felt that the benefits of traceability outweigh the barriers/disadvantages, with the main benefits found in the area of crisis management. Nonetheless, it appears that many benefits are still unknown to SMEs, especially in relation to the firm’s operations/strategy. Some implications for government and managers are suggested. Originality/value – This study fills the gap found in the literature where few recent academic papers focused attention on SMEs awareness of traceability in the FSC.