Mandatory Application of Food Traceability Management for Special Purpose Food Companies with Sales Over 100 Million KRW

"Mandatory Registration Required Starting December"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ji-hee] The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety announced on the 3rd that manufacturers and importers of special-purpose foods consumed by pregnant and lactating women, patients, etc., with sales of 100 million KRW or more, must register as subjects of food traceability management starting this December.

Special-purpose foods refer to infant formula, formula for growth stages, weaning foods for infants and young children, foods for pregnant and lactating women, foods for special medical purposes, and formula foods for weight control.

Since 2014, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety has applied the food traceability management system, which records information at each stage from manufacturing and processing to sales, allowing for tracking and identifying causes in case of food safety incidents and taking necessary measures such as recalls. Currently, food traceability management is implemented for infant foods and formula milk, and for foods for pregnant and lactating women, foods for special medical purposes, and formula foods for weight control, it has been applied sequentially based on sales criteria since 2019.

This year, the registration target for food traceability management includes manufacturers and importers of foods for pregnant and lactating women, foods for special medical purposes, and formula foods for weight control with sales of 100 million KRW or more based on 2016 sales. From December 1 next year, all food manufacturing and processing companies and import sales companies producing special-purpose foods will be subject to mandatory food traceability management.

An official from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety stated, "With the expansion of food traceability management for special-purpose foods, we expect the safety management level of these foods to improve," adding, "We will continue to expand food traceability management for children's preferred foods as well."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.