The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) defines the concept of traceability as the ability to track the history and use or location of goods or behaviors through registered identification codes. Establish a corresponding traceability system to ensure that safety and quality problems can be traced back to the source, find out the crux of the problem and solve it in time. There are two ways to include products in the traceability system: one is to track from the front to the back according to the industrial chain, that is, from the raw grain planting base, the purchaser, the transporter, the processing enterprise, and the seller. This method is mainly used to find out the causes of quality and safety problems and determine the origin and characteristics of products; The other is tracing from the back to the front according to the food chain. That is to say, if the quality problems of the products purchased by consumers are found, they can be traced back layer by layer to finally determine the problem. This method is mainly used for recall of defective products and traceability of responsibilities.

The food traceability system is to effectively control the whole process of food from farmland to table and ensure the quality and safety of food. If there is a problem with a certain food, the regulatory authority can quickly find the source of the food through computer records. In the event of a major food safety accident, the competent department can immediately carry out investigation and determine the scope of possible impact of the accident and the degree of harm of the accident, promptly notify the public and urgently recall the circulated problem food, and make overall arrangements to control the development of the situation throughout the country to maximize the protection of public health and life safety. Food is like having its own "ID card". As long as the barcode on the food is scanned on the POS machine, we can trace back to the place of origin, growth and even gene of the food.