METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR TRACKING LABOR INFORMATION IN THE PRODUCTION OF FOOD PRODUCTS

• US 20130008950A1
• Filed: 07/12/2012
• Published: 01/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/02/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SureHarvest, Inc. (Where Food Comes From, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: SureHarvest, Inc. (Where Food Comes From, Inc.)
• Inventors: Dlott, Jeffrey W., Rosenberg, Harry W., Ohmart, Clifford P., Connolly, Rebecca
• Granted Patent: US 9,619,762 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 235/376
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063 Operations research, analysis or management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/018 Certifying business or products
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/02 Agriculture; Fishing; Forestry; Mining

Abstract

Various embodiments of the present disclosure include methods and apparatus for tracking labor information in the production of food products. In an example embodiment, an apparatus comprises a hand-held device including a display and one or more input devices to sense product identification indicia associated with or affixed to a food product that is grown or raised in an agricultural operation. The hand-held device includes at least one processor to determine a machine-readable identification code from the product identification indicia; send the identification code to at least one remote server; receive, from the at least one remote server, information that is associated with the product, the information including labor information that is associated with the production of the food product; and display at least some of the labor information on the display in human readable form.

Claims

1. An apparatus, comprising:

a hand-held device including;

a display; and

one or more input devices to sense product identification indicia associated with or affixed to a food product that is grown or raised in an agricultural operation;

the hand-held device including at least one processor to;

a) determine a machine-readable identification code from the product identification indicia;

b) send the identification code to at least one remote server;

c) receive, from the at least one remote server, information that is associated with the product, the information including labor information that is associated with the production of the food product, the labor information being indicative of one or more attributes of the labor used to produce the food product, the one or more attributes selected from the group;

labor working conditions, labor pay rates, labor health care, or the age of laborers; and

d) display at least some of the labor information on the display in human readable form.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more input devices includes one or more of the following:

a keyboard;

bar code reader;

an audio device;

an imaging camera; and

, a radio frequency identification means.

3-6. -6. (canceled)

7. A system comprising one or more processors to:

a) receive an identification code from one or more input devices, the identification code corresponding to a food product;

b) receive or store information that is associated with the product, the information including labor information that is associated with the production of the food product, the labor information being indicative of one or more attributes of the labor used to produce the food product, the one or more attributes selected from the group;

labor working conditions, labor pay rates, labor health care, or the age of laborers; and

c) send to a display, in response to receiving the identification code, at least some of the information associated with the product.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein at least one of the processors is further to receive or store at least some of the information that is associated with the product at one or more remote servers.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the system further includes a computer or hand-held device comprising at least one of the processors, and wherein the at least one processor is further to receive, from the one or more remote servers, at least some of the information that is associated with the product.

10-17. -17. (canceled)

18. A computer-implemented method comprising using one or more processors to:

a) receive an identification code from one or more input devices, the identification code corresponding to a food product;

b) receive or store information that is associated with the product, the information including labor information that is associated with the production of the food product, the labor information being indicative of one or more attributes of the labor used to produce the food product, the one or more attributes selected from the group;

labor working conditions, labor pay rates, labor health care, or the age of laborers; and

c) send to a display, in response to receiving the identification code, at least some of the information that is associated with the product.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising storing or receiving at least some of the information that is associated with the product at one or more remote servers.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising sending to a computer or hand-held device, from the one or more remote servers, at least some of the information that is associated with the product.

21-23. -23. (canceled)

24. A method of processing data pertaining to an agricultural product, the method comprising receiving data from a custodian of an agricultural product, the data including product data pertaining to the agricultural product, the product data being indicative of one or more attributes of the labor used to produce the agricultural product, the one or more attributes selected from the group:

labor working conditions, labor pay rates, labor health care, or the age of laborers at a custodial location.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the product data includes a universal product code and/or a lot code of the agricultural product.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein least some of the product data is included in indicia applied to or affixed to the product.

27. The method of claim 24, wherein at least some of the product data is included in a bar code.

28. The method of claim 24, wherein the product data is received from one or more custodians in a series of custodians, each controlling a custodial location along a chain of custody of the agricultural product.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein one or more of the custodians in the chain of custody performs a data capture operation to capture product data reflecting the one or more labor attributes at the respective custodial location.

30. The method of claim 28, wherein the product data further includes a visual image of the product at one or more of the custodial locations.

31. The method of claim 28, wherein the product data further includes location data of the agricultural product at one or more of the custodial locations in the chain of custody.

32-48. -48. (canceled)

49. Computing apparatus, comprising:

a machine-readable computer database to;

store machine-readable agricultural labor information showing at least one aspect of production of a food product; and

store machine-readable agricultural product identification data in the computer database;

store machine-readable relation data relating the agricultural product identification data to the agricultural labor information;

one or more programmed computers operable to;

receive machine-readable product identification data from a remote device; and

use the relation data to retrieve at least some of the agricultural labor information corresponding to the product identification data; and

send the at least some agricultural labor information to the remote device.

50. (canceled)