Fi Europe 2025: How AI, blockchain and digital platforms are redefining food safety transparency

As food safety standards and sourcing regulations tighten globally, manufacturers are turning to AI, blockchain, and supply chain intelligence platforms to transform food safety from reactive compliance into predictive, transparent systems. 

At Fi Europe 2025 in Paris next week, exhibitors will showcase how these technologies are giving manufacturers real-time control over product integrity while meeting stricter regulatory demands.

The shift represents a fundamental change in how the food industry approaches safety and traceability. Rather than relying on traditional testing methods that can take days or weeks, companies are deploying AI-powered prediction tools, real-time monitoring systems, and industry-backed digital platforms that allow them to identify and address risks before they reach consumers.

Predictive AI transforming shelf life management 

Belgian food safety technology company Handary exemplifies this transformation. The company has developed an integrated approach combining biotechnology, analytical science, and AI to give manufacturers unprecedented visibility and control over shelf life.

“Through Shelfex AI, we authenticate ingredients, predict spoilage before it occurs, and ensure compliance with all ‘Date Marking’ requirements,” Dr. Aimin He, managing director at Handary, tells Food Ingredients First. 

The company’s Microfier smart labels provide real-time microbial signals directly on packaging, adding a new layer of transparency that allows both manufacturers and consumers to monitor product safety. Meanwhile, Hékôn intelligent micro-perforated packaging membranes regulate gas balance while tracking storage conditions throughout distribution.

“By connecting laboratory data, production parameters, and intelligent packaging into a unified, traceable system, we are transforming shelf life management from empirical judgment to a predictive, transparent, and science-validated framework — strengthening both food safety and consumer trust,” Aimin He continues.

Industry giants build collaborative platform 

While individual companies develop proprietary technologies, major food and agriculture players are also recognizing that complex supply chain challenges require collaborative solutions. 

This realization led several Fi Europe attendees, including ADM, Cargill, Louis Dreyfus Company, and Olam Food Ingredients (ofi), to found Tract, a supply chain intelligence platform that raised €18.6 million (US$21.4 million) in Series A funding this year.

Handary’s Shelfex AI system integrates laboratory data and production parameters to transform shelf-life management.Tract provides purpose-built supply chain intelligence for agriculture, helping companies map sourcing networks, assess sustainability risks, and improve traceability across commodities such as cocoa, coffee, corn, and cotton. The platform addresses a critical industry pain point: incompatible data systems that prevent companies from aggregating and comparing sustainability metrics across their supply chains.

“Our goal is to take a proactive approach to transparency, making access to ESG metrics and supply chain traceability simpler, more consistent, and more actionable,” says Kai-Uwe Ostheim, VP of Sustainability Portfolio at ADM. “It helps unlock efficiencies that benefit the entire value chain.”

As the EU Deforestation Regulation and other sustainability regulations come into force, companies need systems that can provide verifiable data on sourcing practices, deforestation monitoring, and carbon tracking. Tract delivers a one-stop platform for compliance needs while enabling companies to manage sourcing risks amid increasing climate and market pressures.

End-to-end traceability in action

Several Fi Europe 2025 exhibitors are demonstrating how these technological advances translate into operational reality. ofi, a finalist for the Fi Europe Sustainability Innovation Award, has developed its Cocoa Compass initiative to provide enhanced traceability and transparency throughout its cocoa supply chain. The company achieved 100% traceability to farm or community in its direct cocoa supply chain in 2020.

ofi’s AtSource sustainability management system provides customers with detailed data and insights on where and how cocoa and other ingredients are sourced, including their social and environmental impact. At ofi's laboratory testing facility in Koog aan de Zaan in the Netherlands, the company introduced a laboratory information management system where equipment captures data directly, removing manual data capture. The company also uses infrared equipment technology across many cocoa processing sites, reducing measurement time from 30-45 minutes to just five minutes.

“The granularity of our data, coupled with our extensive footprint on the ground in origin countries and strong relationships with farmers, means we can continue to move the needle with collaborators,” Tejinder Singh Saraon, ofi Cocoa managing director & CEO, previously told us. 

“We’re also investing in technology to help some of the world’s biggest food and beverage brands meet the demand from their consumers for delicious, on-trend products with robust sustainability credentials.”

Fi Europe 2025 exhibitors are showcasing AI-powered traceability platforms that help manufacturers meet EUDR compliance requirements.ADM, also a Sustainability Innovation Award finalist at Fi Europe 2025, has launched its re:source program for fully traceable North American soybeans. The program enrolled almost 5,300 farmers encompassing more than 4.6 million acres across 15 states for the 2024 season, utilizing digital platforms to verify, trace, and segregate participating beans from farms to the final destination. 

Building trust through verifiable data

The convergence of AI, blockchain, and supply chain intelligence platforms reflects a broader industry recognition that consumer trust increasingly depends on verifiable data rather than marketing claims.

“Consumer trust is increasingly built on verifiable data rather than traditional claims,” Handary’s Aimin He says. “AI powers predictive risk analysis, microbial diagnostics, shelf life modeling, and digital quality control traceability. It enables earlier deviation detection, evidence-based shelf life validation, and actionable insights for manufacturers.”

The company notes that blockchain provides tamper-proof provenance for sensitive ingredients, ensuring that sustainability claims, natural-origin certifications, and allergen information are transparent and independently verifiable.

ofi is exploring how AI systems can process real-time food quality measurements from processing facilities globally alongside weather data from beans’ origins. “If the weather in a cocoa origin is particularly wet, it can affect the levels of Free Fatty Acids in the final product,” an ofi spokesperson tells us. 

“AI tools could help us estimate the quality of the finished product and adjust our processing accordingly, ultimately helping us to better plan, predict inconsistencies, reduce waste, and enhance the traceability of our supply chain.”

“Together, AI and blockchain convert complex food-safety processes into transparent, data-driven proofs — giving consumers confidence not only in the products they buy, but in how those products were produced, validated, and safeguarded across the supply chain,” Aimin He says.

As regulatory frameworks continue to evolve, technology providers are building adaptability into their systems. Handary’s Shelfex AI regulatory engine continuously monitors new guidance — from EFSA opinions to FDA GRAS updates and EU date-marking reforms — and updates compliance modules to keep customers audit-ready.

“As transparency becomes essential, our approach is simple: Quantify what was subjective. Digitalize what was manual. Validate shelf life scientifically, not empirically,” Aimin He continues. “This is how we help the global food industry meet higher safety and transparency standards with confidence.”

The technologies showcased at Fi Europe 2025 represent a maturation of digital tools that were once conceptual or limited to pilot programs. For manufacturers, the message is clear: food safety and transparency technologies are no longer optional innovations but essential infrastructure that will increasingly separate market leaders from those struggling to maintain compliance.