Woolworths is working with independent start-up Escavox, a business tasked with extending the shelf life of fresh fruit and vegetables in retail outlets by tracking and monitoring produce from the farm to the supermarket, according to an Australian Financial Review report.
Escavox was started last year with a plan to track each pallet of fruit and vegetables and measure temperature, time and location.
John Dahlsen, former chairman of Woolworths has joined the start-up led by CEO Luke Wood.
Temperature controls and specialised packaging are common measures to prevent product losses in the supply chain.
According to Escavox’s website, production and supply chain data needs to be automatically collected and impartially managed if it is to be trusted and acted on.
It points out that siloed operators, inconsistent visibility in each leg of the chain, limited incentives to collaborate and multiple points of handover has led to no aggregated data and no person or party able to see or understand the complete supply chain.
This makes it difficult to assign product accountability and prevent liability from those who own the product even if that cause is not within their control.
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