Overview Food safety significantly impacts economic growth and human health, driving a trend towards stricter legal requirements for risk management. Public and private food quality assurance schemes, whether mandatory or voluntary, are widely acknowledged as effective solutions for safeguarding consumers against unreliable and unsafe food sources. Digital traceability systems and platforms enable swift and targeted product approvals within agricultural value chains and distribution networks. The lack of consistent enforcement of quality assurance certification at the local level, coupled with disjointed and non-interoperable traceability measures, poses risks to both human health and access to global agri-food markets. This article presents key findings and proposes solutions for enhancing interoperable traceability and achieving quality assurance standards, especially for countries in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS). The takeaways are from an April 2023 capacity-building and knowledge exchange workshop and ongoing demonstrations of digital traceability of agri-food products (e.g., durian from Thailand, dragon fruit from Viet Nam, livestock from Lao People’s Democratic Republic to the People's Republic of China) under the Asian Development Bank's technical assistance GMS Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security Program. Current State of Affairs and Emerging Patterns Interoperable protocols and standards play a critical role in enhancing cross-border traceability, particularly in response to increasingly strict import requirements set by a few countries in the GMS. This demand for interoperability not only ensures regulatory compliance but also meets consumer preferences in markets like the European Union and the People’s Republic of China (PRC), where consumers increasingly seek safer and more traceable products. Some GMS countries are already undergoing noticeable changes as these dynamics reshape trading patterns and supply chain characteristics. For instance, Viet Nam's dragon fruit exports to the PRC now primarily pass through official trade gates instead of local border gates. This shift is a response to the PRC's new import requirements, covering phytosanitary standards, traceability, packaging, labeling, appearance, and quality. Similar requirements apply for Thailand’s exports of durian to PRC and Lao PDR’s exports of livestock to PRC. However, stakeholders, including orchard producers and processing factories, face challenges in low-digital-literacy environments and implementing technological innovations for food safety. While infrastructure investments are crucial, digital technology training and outreach to lead farmers in remote areas are also essential, especially in regions dominated by small producers. It's imperative to demonstrate the benefits versus costs of scaling up and implementing traceability systems across the value chain. For instance, in the case of Good Agricultural Practices (GAP)-certified durian fruit trade between Thailand and the PRC and dragon fruit trade between Viet Nam and the PRC, data logging and storage were mandated only until collectors, hindering final customers from tracing the product back to its origins. Moreover, while some value chains are still developing traceability protocols and procedures, others have witnessed a surge in commodity-specific data logging and traceability platforms. Unfortunately, this has led to incompatibility and increased indirect costs, particularly for farmers navigating multiple interfaces and inputting information redundantly. Due to the lack of traceability protocols, the premium prices that certified food items could potentially command have often been eroded. How to Achieve Interoperable Traceability among Countries Harmonize traceability standards. Countries can collaborate to harmonize their traceability and quality standards and regulatory frameworks, ensuring compatibility. This can be achieved through regional agreements or international standards bodies. They can also agree on standardized formats for data exchange, enabling easy and efficient information sharing. Adopting globally recognized standards like GS1 facilitates this process. Adopt shared digital technologies. Countries can adopt shared technologies for traceability and quality assurance, such as barcode scanning, radio-frequency identification (RFID), and blockchain. This ensures data is captured and shared in a standardized, interoperable manner. Enhance capacity. Governments, development partners, and private sector firms can provide training and support to help farmers, processors, and other stakeholders understand the importance of traceability and quality assurance. This includes assisting them in implementing necessary systems and technologies. Collaborate and share information. Governments, development partners, and private sector firms can collaborate and exchange information on best practices and challenges to achieve common goals. This fosters trust and facilitates data sharing between countries. Additional Measures Develop public-private partnerships. Governments can collaborate with private sector stakeholders to establish partnerships aimed at promoting traceability and quality assurance. These partnerships facilitate capacity building, information sharing, and the development of common standards and regulations. Strengthen research capacity. Governments and international organizations can fund research on traceability and quality assurance to drive innovation and technology development. Collaboration with universities, research institutes, and private sector partners helps identify new opportunities and best practices. Offer incentives. Governments can incentivize private sector involvement in traceability and quality assurance initiatives through measures like tax breaks, grants, and financial incentives. Engage stakeholders. Governments can actively involve stakeholders across the supply chain, including farmers, processors, retailers, and consumers, to identify gaps and deficiencies in traceability and quality control. This collaborative approach helps identify improvement areas and develop effective solutions. Resources Asian Development Bank. Greater Mekong Subregion Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security Program. Landell Mills. Interoperable Traceability and Quality Assurance Standards in the Greater Mekong Subregion: A Value Chain Approach. Ask the Experts Srinivasan Ancha Principal Climate Change Specialist, Climate Change, Resilience, and Environment Cluster, Climate Change and Sustainable Development Department, Asian Development Bank Ancha Srinivasan received his doctorate degree from Cambridge University, United Kingdom. He has multidisciplinary experience in climate science and policy, implemented more than 50 climate change projects, and contributed to global initiatives, such as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Global Environmental Outlook, and Millennium Ecosystems Assessment. Follow Srinivasan Ancha on Asian Development Bank (ADB) The Asian Development Bank is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members—49 from the region. Its main instruments for helping its developing member countries are policy dialogue, loans, equity investments, guarantees, grants, and technical assistance. Follow Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Landell Mills Management Consulting Landell Mills is an international development consulting firm, which provides a range of development-oriented services that aim to assist countries and their peoples in attaining the Sustainable Development Goals. Its mission is to assist clients to participate actively in the global economy while protecting fragile environments and vulnerable communities in the process. Follow Landell Mills on Leave your question or comment in the section below: View the discussion thread.