Key Update 

The European Commission has launched TraceMap, an artificial intelligence (AI) platform designed to help authorities detect food fraud, trace contaminated products, and respond faster to food safety incidents across the European Union. The platform is now accessible to national authorities in all EU member states to strengthen food safety investigations and improve monitoring across the food supply chain.

Olivér Várhelyi described TraceMap as a major step toward improving the EU’s ability to respond to food safety crises and tackle food fraud. He said the system will also improve coordination between countries and offer stronger protection for both farmers and consumers.

How TraceMap Uses AI to Track Food Risks

TraceMap analyses large volumes of data generated across agri-food systems to identify risks in the food supply chain. Using AI, the platform tracks trade patterns and production flows almost in real time. The system helps authorities strengthen risk assessments, identify links between food businesses and distribution networks, and monitor supply chains more effectively. These capabilities enable regulators to detect unsafe products more quickly and conduct faster product recalls. The Commission has already tested the system through a pilot version. Authorities used it during recent recalls of baby formula across Europe linked to contaminated ingredients sourced from China.

Rising Food Safety Alerts in Europe

Food safety alerts in Europe continue to increase. The EU’s Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) recorded 5,250 notifications in 2024, representing a 12 per cent rise compared with the previous year. Around one-third of these alerts involved border rejections, mainly due to pesticide residues detected in fruit and vegetable imports from Türkiye, Egypt, and India. Germany reported the highest number of notifications at 1,907, followed by the Netherlands with 1,155 and Italy with 965.

Foodborne Illnesses Also Increasing

According to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), European countries reported 6,558 foodborne outbreaks in 2024, a 14.5 per cent increase from the previous year. The most commonly reported infections include campylobacteriosis, salmonellosis, Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) infections, and listeriosis.

Among these illnesses, Listeria infections caused the highest proportion of hospitalisations and deaths in the EU. In 2024, about seven in ten infected individuals required hospital care, and approximately one in twelve people died from the infection.

Source: Euro News