Do you really know what you’re eating? For consumers, it clearly matters: no one wants to eat something that will compromise their ethics, or their immune system. But, for businesses and investors, too, it is becoming increasingly important to know what is on the plate.
New regulations in Europe and the US, together with pressure from sustainability-minded investors, are prompting restaurant and grocery companies to look more closely at where their food originates. In response, an array of food-tracing start-ups is offering to help companies comply.
The EU’s rules — known as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive — will land first. From January 2024, they will require big companies operating in the EU to disclose new information about environmental and social risks. This will include data to make it possible to trace products from raw materials to final form.