Origins Software’s product allows
everyone from hobbyists to corporates
with more than 10,000 hives to easily
track and verify products throughout
the value chain. Founder and chief executive
officer Hayden Stowell says ApiTrak maintains the
confidence of overseas consumers and regulators
in the integrity of New Zealand Manuka honey by
ring-fencing the industry to easily identify stolen
or adulterated product and provide consumers
with clear traceability. “Consumers worldwide are
increasingly seeking assurances that everything
they eat is safe and can be reliably traced back to
its point of origin. They want to be able to connect
with where their honey is from,” Stowell says.
ApiTrak software can be utilised at every step of
the supply chain and its advanced authentication
system verifies product and captures all critical
tracking events. The cloud-based GS1 compliant
system utilises small NFC (near field communication)
tags which are attached to hives, drums
and jars. Stowell says the ApiTrak complements
existing systems and is managed through a
web-based platform and proprietary smart phone
apps, meaning no expensive extra hardware is
needed. The surge in beekeeping over the past
five years has created an increased need to
safeguard the valuable honey industry. “By June
2016 there were estimated to be almost 700,000
beehives. This has grown by at least 100,000 since
- our industry is in fast growth,” Stowell says.
“The high market demand for Manuka honey in
particular is driving an increase in hive numbers
and, with larger numbers entering the industry,
there are more pressures on land use and an
increased need to ensure hives are correctly sited
and that honey can be securely tracked from beehive
through to shelf.” ApiTrak chief technology
officer Duncan Williamson says the platform goes
well beyond the hive management-only systems
offered by some other providers. “ApiTrak can
be integrated with existing hive management
systems, providing a bolt-on service to the many
platforms that lack our food safety compliance
functionality. Our long-term aim is to help create
a fully connected industry with robust traceability
and food security.” New Zealand Trade & Enterprise
customer manager Maori business Jamie
Te Hiwi, says global consumers are demanding
the highest standards of food safety throughout
the supply chain. “We also know the risk we run
if the consumer loses trust in our ability to control
the safety of their food. To earn more from the
food we export, solutions like ApiTrak will help
attract the premium price from consumers willing
to buy the intangible attributes like food safety,
country of origin labelling, and traceability.” The
cloud-based ApiTrak platform makes food safety
compliance easy and significantly cuts down on
paperwork for apiarists, processing facilities and
marketing companies. The system has potential
applications beyond the honey industry to a range
of other food producers. Consumers worldwide
are increasingly seeking assurances that everything
they eat is safe and can be reliably traced
back to its point of origin. Ngati Porou Miere Ltd
Partnership general manager Victor Goldsmith
– who also serves on ApiTrak’s advisory board –
says his organisation owns 1000 hives on its land
blocks and aims to continue growth. “As we grow
the business to include extraction processing
and bottling, we will be one of the only honey
businesses that is truly integrated from the land
right through to the brand. ApiTrak will be vital to
our growth.”
http://www.origins.software/
and https://apitrak.solutions/
HONEY INNOVATION TO
HELP MANUKA INTEGRITY
A New Zealand company which spent seven years developing
a unique platform that safeguards the country’s more than
800,000 hives has launched its unique software ApiTrak.
42 APRIL 2018
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