History

Since 2000 we have participated with the food industry in the development

of product identification and electronic data sharing standards.

We have won several industry association awards for our innovative

use of these standards in the technologies that we have developed

and the benefits that we have delivered to businesses

with our implementation of these technologies.

Merit-Trax Technologies

Food Software Systems Experience

Merit-Trax Technologies was founded in 2000 by a team of software developers

and system integrators, who have more than 70 years of combined experience

in the food industry developing and implementing real-time supply chain management systems.

We were early implementers of the GS1 (EAN/UCC) standards for barcodes

to identify and manage the movement and variable attributes of boxes and pallets in meat,

poultry and seafood supply chains, including the implementation of

the VICS EDI standards for electronic data sharing between distributors and food retailers.

At its founding Merit-Trax developed and sold food distribution, box meat inventory,

fresh and frozen food warehouse and back to back food trading systems.

In 2002 Merit-Trax and other business partners, including IBM,

collaborated on the adoption of the GS1 (EAN/UCC) barcode and Global Data Dictionary

standards to implement food traceability using the one link up / one link down method

of electronic data sharing and the use of RFID technology in animal identification

and food processing traceability. This led to the development of

Merit-Trax’s TRAX-IT Food Software Systems solutions which consists of an

integrated suite of modules and components to manage production,

supply chain and traceability for primary producers, packers,

processors and distributors. TRAX-IT food software systems

implement the GS1 Global Traceability Standards, Can-Trace Traceability Standards,

the Traceability for Meat and Poultry US Implementation Guide and

product identification and data sharing best practices for

livestock value chains and fresh and frozen food supply chains.

Merit-Trax has been an active participant in the development of

food software traceability standards and best practices including

its participation in the Efficient Food Service Response initiative

and the Can-Trace Traceability Technology Committee.

Since 2002 Merit-Trax has been a food software traceability technology

provider and consultant to both Agriculture and

Agrifood Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

In 2006 Merit-Trax was selected by GS1 Canada and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

to develop the Can-Trace Traceability Integration Guidelines, which identified the gaps

between primary producers and their downstream supply chains and recommended

the changes that were needed to version 1.0 of the Can-Trace Traceability Standard.

These recommendations were adopted in version 2.0 of the

Can-Trace Traceability Standard. Merit-Trax was also wrote the

Can-Trace Traceability Multi-Ingredient White Paper.

Merit-Trax has conducted traceability workshops for many industry conferences,

government agencies and producer associations in order to present the

many benefits of implementing traceability technology.

We have conducted workshops for the 2007 Canadian RFID conference in Toronto,

the 2008 GS1 USA UConnect conference in Dallas, the 2009 Trace R&D conference

in Winnipeg, the Agriculture and Agrifood Canada Traceability and

Food Safety Research divisions, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency Animal Health

and Policy divisions, the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture,

the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, the Ontario Veal Association and

the Ontario Cattle Feeders Association.

Merit-Trax was nominated by GS1 Canada and awarded the VICS Collaborative

Commerce Achievement Award as Most Innovative Third-Party Technology Provider

at the GS1 USA and VICS annual convention in Orlando in 2007.

Merit-Trax has a proven track record of innovation in implementing food software

systems which utilize traceability technology in a manner that provides

our customers with maximum cost savings that they gain through improved

operational productivity and detailed production cost management.

For example, at Atlantic Beef Products our TRAX-IT Slaughterhouse Software system

provided real-time data integration between our supply chain management software,

a third party RFID trolley hook tracking system, an Avery Weightronix

integrated weighing system and a Marel Flow Line deboning / cut room system.

TRAX-IT automates the livestock payment process using a settlement grid that rewards producers

whose carcasses meet retail customers’ product type and attribute requirements,

automates suggested and minimum selling price controls in the sales order module

using individual production lot costs and a customer price discount grid, and automates the

tracking of the meat from individual animals and / or receiving lots into the box and onto the pallet,

to ensure that customers receive the product with the specific attributes that they ordered.

This TRAX-IT implementation earned the Canadian Information Productivity Award

Gold Medal for Excellence in Innovation in 2006 and the Business Solutions Magazine Channel

Innovator Award for the RFID Category in 2007.