Meat and Poultry Case Label Requirements
When it comes to industry standards surrounding the proper labeling of food items, few are more important than the proper labeling of meat and poultry products. The delicate nature of these food items and their limited shelf life make correct labeling imperative for the safety of consumers.
Industry standards have been set forth by large retailers like Walmart as well as government regulations, that encompass all necessary information for meat and poultry labeling. Relying on the standards of a large corporation like Walmart and those state and federal regulations ensures that all labels will display the pertinent information for optimizing supply chain transfer as well as consumer safety. For the full list of Supply Chain Packaging Guidelines set forth by Walmart we recommend their abundant guide here.
The Meat and Poultry case label provides industry standard data to speed the inventory flow of meat and poultry products through the supply chain. The information on the label is required to be both scannable and readable. Use of the Meat and Poultry case label replaces the requirement of general case markings.
AMI offers a plethora of products to ensure labels are readable to the eye as well as scannable by automated technologies utilized by retailers and distributors.
For industry information and standards specifications such as label size and formatting, refer to www.gs1us.org, North American Industry Guidance for Standard Case Labeling.
All meat and poultry shipments are required to include the following information:
- Product description
- Date (packaging or sell by)
- EST number (for USDA inspected items only)
- Net weight
- Inspection Stamp
- GS1-128 barcode: Barcode is required to include Supplier pack GTIN, batch/lot number. Other information is optional.
The following are optional to include on meat labels:
- Supplier name
- Vendor stock number
- Supplier ID number
- PLU number
- Walmart item number (for Walmart items only)
- Safe handling instructions
- Selling unit UPC barcode
The above requirements apply to all fresh or frozen meat and poultry items.
*All fresh or frozen Meat/Poultry Labels/Carton Markings are required to use the GS1-128 barcode no later than 1/1/2023. ITF-14 format will no longer be accepted after this date.
**Please note in addition to correct labeling for safety and health reasons it is also imperative that proper handling and temperature guidelines are followed.
When it comes to the effective marking and labeling of food products, AMI has the tools you need. From print and apply labels to print and scannable information on a variety of materials, we offer a comprehensive array of products designed to meet and exceed all industry standards set forth. There is no such thing as being too careful when it comes to the safety surrounding food labeling, especially meat and poultry products.