A. Manickavasagan, University of Guelph, Canada, opens KAU-APEDA workshop on “Traceable Trade – From Source to Shipment”.
A one-day national workshop on ‘Traceable Trade – From Source to Shipment’, jointly organized by Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) and Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) in New Delhi, has highlighted the growing importance of digital traceability in strengthening India’s agri-food supply chains for global markets.
A. Manickavasagan from the University of Guelph, Canada, who opened the workshop, highlighted emerging technologies such as blockchain-based monitoring, real-time data collection and AI-driven verification. He stressed that traceability is now crucial to access markets that prioritize safety, sustainability and provenance.
Mani Chellappan, dean of the College of Agriculture, noted that digital traceability empowers farmers by improving market access, enabling premium pricing and integrating them more effectively into global value chains.
Man Prakash Vijay, DGM, APEDA, explained in detail the organization’s initiatives to improve traceability of all export items including spices, fruits, vegetables, coffee and organic products. He emphasized the need for capacity building and wider technology adoption to meet international compliance requirements.
KP Sudheer, Professor and Head of Agribusiness Incubator (ABI), highlighted the crucial role of start-ups in developing scalable digital traceability systems and explained the support that KAU’s RAFTAAR Agribusiness Incubator offers to innovators in agricultural technology.
Sureshkumar PK, Professor and EC Member, KAU and Gayathri Das, Business Development Manager, APEDA acknowledged the collective commitment of stakeholders working towards a transparent, technology-enabled and globally competitive food supply chain.
Farmer representatives, FPO members and start-up founders from the spice and coffee industries shared field-level perspectives and described how digital documentation improved transparency, resolved quality disputes and increased buyer confidence.
The technical sessions presented advances in traceability platforms, data security and blockchain integration. A panel discussion with industry experts and producer organizations explored opportunities, challenges and policy imperatives to accelerate deployment in Kerala.
A session on drones demonstrated how precision tools can complement traceability with improved field monitoring and documentation.
As food exports are increasingly linked to compliance, safety assurance and consumer trust, the KAU-APEDA initiative provided timely insights and capacity building support to help stakeholders transition to credible, future-ready traceability systems from source to shipment.
Published on November 20, 2025