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Supply Chain Traceability Header

SERVICE DESIGN / DESIGN LEADERSHIP

FDA Traceability Compliance

Company

Kroger Technology & Digital

Role(s)

Product Designer
Lead Blueprinting Sessions
Design Strategy
Service Design
Workshop Facilitator
Product Design

Summary

The FDA’s new traceability rule requires grocery retailers to accurately track lot and batch codes across the supply chain to improve food safety and recall response. Kroger needed a compliant, low-disruption solution that integrated data capture into fulfillment center workflows while maintaining operational efficiency.

 

Background

The FDA’s new traceability rule is changing how grocery supply chains track food from the source to the shelf.

The final rule from the Food and Drug Administration requires companies that make, process, pack, or store foods on the Food Traceability List to keep detailed records of key data and tracking events. These records make it easier to find and remove contaminated products quickly. For grocery businesses, this means upgrading systems, sharing data more freely, and improving transparency to strengthen food safety and recall response.

Problem Statement

Kroger needed to meet the FDA’s new food traceability requirements without disrupting fulfillment operations.

The FDA required retailers to track lot and batch codes across the supply chain. For Kroger, this meant capturing traceability data within fulfillment center workflows without disrupting productivity. The challenge involved aligning internal teams and a third-party platform on data collection, system triggers, and accuracy across systems. Without a clear solution, Kroger faced compliance risks, traceability gaps, and operational challenges.

Mapping the Decisions

We quickly mapped where lot code capture was required and proposed adding an item-level flag to trigger capture in our third-party platform. Before building solutions on our side, we aligned with their stakeholders to ensure the platform could recognize and respond to this flag.

Research & Workshops

Data Flow Diagram - Simplified Version

After reviewing the documentation from our third-party partner, I facilitated several workshops with our architects and product managers to map the data flow between both sides, determining how lot and batch codes would be submitted, stored, and retrieved.

The resulting data flow diagram became a shared reference point, aligning business and technical requirements, clarifying how third-party systems exchanged and stored the data, and providing a single source of truth for both developers and QA. By visualizing the process, we reduced confusion, accelerated solution design, and ensured FDA traceability standards could be met without disrupting fulfillment operations.

Receiving Journey

At a high level, we reviewed the entire receiving process to identify opportunities for capturing key data elements. From this analysis, I pinpointed the optimal points in the workflow to capture lot and batch codes in order to meet FDA traceability requirements.

Service Blueprint

I led our team to expand the receiving journey into a preliminary blueprint, mapping out each step to highlight where lot and batch code capture could be integrated for FDA traceability.