Why cheesemakers are injecting their parmesan with edible microchips
Parmigiano-Reggiano makers are putting edible microchips in their cheese in an attempt to beat counterfeiters, the Wall Street Journal reports.
The microchips offer blockchain-backed tracking, and real-time inventory control features that help buyers differentiate between authentic and fake products.
“We keep fighting with new methods,” the Wall Street Journal quoted Alberto Pecorari, the man in charge of protecting Parmigiano’s authenticity for the group representing producers, as saying.
“We won’t give up,” he added.
The chips are stuck to cheese wheels with the help of a casein label. It’s the size of a grain of sand, and the casein label makes it safe to digest.
The authenticity of the cheese wheel is revealed by scanning the microchip with a laser reader, which gives a unique serial ID for the wheel.
More than 3,500 European food products, including Italian Parma ham, French Champagne, and Greek feta cheese, have received protected status.
Parmigiano-Reggiano manufacturers want to protect the authenticity of their cheese as it comes from a specific region and is made using strictly defined materials and methods.
“Fake” Parmigiano-Reggiano producers don’t follow some or all of the defined materials and methods but still claim to be the real deal.
Another form of authenticating foods that have received protected status is the use of QR codes.
One such example is the addition of QR codes to individual portions of pre-sliced Proscuitto di San Daniele — a raw ham similar to Proscuitto di Parma.
A smartphone can scan the QR code to show information such as how long the prosciutto has been aged and when it was sliced.
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