Tasmania’s Reid Fruits has announced it will pair technology from Laava and Source Certain International with e-commerce and digital marketing company RooLife Group to protect and enhance its brand in season 2020/21.
Last season the cherry grower-exporter deployed Laava’s patented Smart Fingerprint secure label technology and was able to thwart at least 10 counterfeiting attempts.
This season it will be expanding its capabilities by adding Source Certain’s provenance technology, TSW Trace, and RooLife’s Guzhang consumer engagement and social commerce platform.
The joint partnership combines scientific and digital security measures to give Reid Fruits exceptional brand protection capabilities, which are integrated with a consumer engagement platform and media campaign tailored to its key markets.
TSW Trace analyses the chemical, molecular, elemental and isotopic composition of products, which are directly influenced by where the product is grown. It has already been used by Australia’s prawn, pork and barramundi industries to safeguard the integrity of export markets and help avoid significant economic loss.
Tim Reid, managing director of Reid Fruits, said the combination of Laava and Source Certain gives consumers confidence when buying their cherries, that they are getting what they paid for.
“For our export partners, it demonstrates we are continually innovating to protect our brand and look after our customers and partners,” said Reid.
Gavin Ger, commercial director and joint-chief executive of Laava, was excited to be adding Source Certain and RooLife to the mix.
“We are honoured to partner again with Reid Fruits this year and delighted to be collaborating with Source Certain and RooLife to bring the power of our combined Australian technology to protect and enhance one of Australia’s most revered export brands,” Ger said.
The Source Certain provenance protection program for Reid Fruits will see cherries from all of Reid Fruits’ southern Tasmanian orchards being sampled and analysed.
Grant Erskine chief operating officer of Source Certain, said each orchard will carry a chemical fingerprint unique to that specific location, which will be stored in a secure database for the potential of cross-referencing during future in-market sampling activities.
“We implement scientific verification technology within ongoing programs that protect the integrity of food as it moves from high quality producers like Reid Fruits at their farms in Tasmania all the way through to consumers in Australia and abroad,” Erskine said.
“Our ongoing verification of the cherries in-market is a great complement to the on-product digital authentication of the Laava Fingerprint – and now this year consumers will be able to learn the full story.”
