Trust in the origin and journey of food has become central to agriculture worldwide. Domestic consumers increasingly seek assurance on how produce was grown and handled, food safety authorities require faster and more precise recall capability, Geographical Indication (GI) products face persistent misuse of their names, and global markets are tightening traceability norms in ways that have exposed Indian exporters to delays, additional inspections and rejections. Each of these needs the same underlying capability: the ability to verify, digitally and reliably, where a product came from and how it moved.
Addressing this challenge, TRST01, a sustainable technology company, has developed the Open AgriTrace Stack (OATS), a blueprint for Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) in agricultural traceability, authored under commission from the World Bank and published under a Creative Commons license. The open, interoperable framework sets out how a trusted, tamper-evident record of agricultural produce can be maintained from farm to consumer, serving food safety, consumer confidence, GI protection and export compliance through a single shared layer rather than separate systems for each.
Drawing on the design lessons of India’s Digital Public Infrastructure programmes such as Aadhaar and UPI, which demonstrated the value of common standards and network interoperability at national scale, OATS proposes a shared digital backbone for agricultural traceability. It would allow farmers, exporters, laboratories, logistics companies and regulators to exchange authenticated information using open standards rather than isolated proprietary systems.
“Global buyers today are no longer satisfied with declarations. They expect verifiable proof of where a product came from, how it was grown and how it moved through the supply chain. As regulations become more stringent across Europe, the US, Japan and other major markets, India requires trusted digital infrastructure that enables complete transparency while keeping compliance simple for every stakeholder,” said Prabir Mishra, CEO, TRST01.
Buyers and regulators alike increasingly seek digital evidence covering the origin of produce, cultivation practices, laboratory testing and supply chain movement. In the absence of credible traceability, exporters can face delays, additional inspections and, in some cases, rejection of consignments, while domestic food safety incidents become harder and slower to contain.
Unlike closed software platforms, OATS is designed as an open framework that allows different digital systems to communicate seamlessly. Farmers, Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs), processors, exporters, laboratories and regulators would be able to share verified information without duplication of records or repeated compliance submissions. The blueprint further sets out inclusivity as a core design principle, recommending that participation should carry no cost to the farmer, so that small and marginal farmers are not excluded from premium domestic and international markets.
Because the blueprint has been placed in the public domain under an open licence, any state government, industry body or technology provider is free to adopt, adapt and implement it without licensing cost, a design choice intended to accelerate adoption across India and in comparable agricultural economies.
The blueprint identifies benefits spanning the value chain: simplified documentation and reduced paperwork, faster and more precise product recalls during food safety incidents, stronger protection of Geographical Indication products, better deterrence of counterfeit agricultural produce, and improved compliance with export market requirements. TRST01 believes that a trusted national traceability infrastructure of this kind can raise consumer confidence in the domestic market, reduce export rejections, improve market access, enhance farmer incomes and reinforce India’s position as a reliable supplier of safe, high-quality agricultural products.
Commenting on the OATS development , Vikas Kanungo, Senior AI and Digital Transformation Strategist, said, “India has shown the world how Digital Public Infrastructure transformed identity through Aadhaar and payments through UPI. Agriculture deserves the same vision. An open, interoperable traceability ecosystem can build trust, improve transparency and unlock new opportunities for millions of farmers and exporters.”
OATS is framed as shared digital infrastructure rather than a single application, allowing governments, exporters, FPOs and private technology providers to continue using their own software while exchanging trusted data through common standards. A first implementation, MahaTRACE, is under consideration by the Government of Maharashtra, with TRST01 and GS1 India as proposed implementation partners. The scope, crop coverage and phasing of any such deployment would be determined by the State Government.
As agricultural trade and domestic food systems alike shift progressively from paper-based documentation to digital verification, TRST01 believes open traceability infrastructure of the kind described in the OATS blueprint can become foundational to India’s agricultural economy, ensuring that every consignment carries not only the product, but trusted proof of its origin, quality and journey.
